A lot of guesswork involved but this is likely a must-win game for Cavan

Preview

Damien Donohoe

Thank God we’re at the end of January and football is back. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, they say, so with that lack of football recently, the new rules and the local derby element of Cavan v Monaghan, we should see a very big crowd in Kingspan Breffni this Saturday night.

There is an element of lottery about the league now because nobody knows just how well teams are adjusting to the new ‘enhancements’. There have been challenge matches going on for weeks now but the tactical side of the game won’t be fully understood for some time yet.

The two sides have taken very different approaches to their preparation challenge matches ahead of the league opener. Raymond Galligan, entering his second season at the helm, decided to give the squad the strongest challenges available. They played, and beat, Kildare and Sligo in their opening two challenge games.

In a stepping up of levels, they went south to play the Munster champions and All-Ireland semi-finalists Kerry. After a closely fought first half, the Kingdom won the second half with a bit to spare as both sides ran in changes.

The following weekend, Cavan were back on the road north to face the current Division 1 league champions, Derry. This was a closer match but again Cavan came away with a defeat after missing too many chances to earn a victory.

Last weekend they faced the current Ulster champions and Division 2 league champions Donegal. Information from the game is sketchy, played as it was behind closed doors, but for the third game in a row Cavan were on the losing side.

Monaghan, under new manager Gabriel Bannigan, on the other hand played Mayo in Castlebar in a charity game and came away with a two-point win. The following week, Division 3 side Antrim travelled to Inniskeen and after four 20-minute quarters, Monaghan ran out comfortable winners, 4-24 to 1-12. They then faced Fermanagh in Tempo last weekend at the turning on of their new floodlights and picked up a 1-19 to 0-17 win.

The contrast in the approach is clear. Bannigan has made the decision to play two Division 3 teams in Monaghan’s last two challenge games before the league. With opposition from lower divisions, the Monaghan players will have been given more time on the ball and there would have been more ‘forgiveness’ for mistakes. On the other hand, the Monaghan players will be coming into this game with confidence having done a lot well in those games while collecting wins.

Galligan, for his part, will be under no illusions about where the Cavan team are right now. They have been tested to breaking point in their challenge games and now know where their weaknesses are ahead of the league. The risk with this is Cavan players may be coming into the Monaghan game with a void in confidence. Which strategy is right? That will be decided in hindsight as the results come in over the next few weeks.

Looking at the game and the new rules, Cavan are going to have to be very disciplined between the 40-metre arc and the 65. Rory Beggan, who has been named as vice-captain, slotted over a number of two-point frees in Monaghan’s challenge last Saturday night.

Nephew of the manager Micheál Bannigan has been named the Farney captain for the year ahead and will take over the free taking duties closer to goal.

A quick word on Conor McManus retiring. He was a generational player and a level of forward that will be almost impossible to replace for Monaghan. His ability to step up in the biggest of moments, even when it looked like the game wasn’t going his way, set him apart from the normal.

In 2015, Feargal Flanagan was detailed with stopping McManus in the Ulster Championship in Kingspan Breffni. McManus got away from him once in the first half to score a point to end a run of four Cavan scores in a row. Flanagan took control of the battle for the next 50 minutes of playing time but with four minutes to go, McManus sent over a trademark clutch point from near the sideline. It was a difficult shot on the practice field never mind with Flanagan right on him and the pressure was immense as this was the shot that would either give Monaghan the lead coming down the home straight or hand away possession. McManus backed himself and delivered – which was no surprise really as he was one of the best forwards in the game over the last decade.

Cavan will come into the game without their own star forward in Paddy Lynch as he continues his recovery from the ACL injury that kept him out of the All-Ireland series and the club championship last year. Gearoid McKiernan is also unlikely to feature either but both are expected back on the field in the coming weeks.

If the Mayo game is anything to go by, we can expect Monaghan to implement a press on our kick-outs with Beggan coming out to the middle of the field. Winning our kick-outs clean or by breaking ball is going to be key and then taking advantage of Beggan’s position will be vital. If we can do what Patton and Donegal did to Derry on the kick-outs last year even once, it will force Monaghan to step off the kick-out.

Stephen O’Hanlon didn’t play against Fermanagh last weekend and has had his injury problems but if he’s fit, he has the ability to get goals with his speed, so he’ll take watching. Woods at full-forward is physically strong and a very good ball-winner so Faulkner or O’Connell will have to stop him and All-Star McCarthy can’t be let dictate the play from the half-back line.

With no real evidence to guide us on the form of either side, it’s impossible to make a prediction on the result without admitting it’s principally guess work. I do think it’s more important for Cavan’s season to get a win than it is for Monaghan. This is a Farney side that’s in transition and having won their last three games, albeit challenge matches, a narrow defeat wouldn’t completely derail them.

In contrast a fourth defeat in a row for us would be far from ideal, even at this early stage. It’s the first game of the year and already has a lot riding on it; let’s hope the lads can make it back-to-back opening round wins in the league.