C’MON MONAGHAN

Monaghan need to take something from ‘Fortress Ballybofey’

COLM SHALVEY REPORTS

Monaghan will be chasing that elusive winning feeling and crucial Allianz NFL points when they travel to Ballybofey to take on Donegal this Sunday. Monaghan haven’t won a game since they beat Donegal in the McKenna Cup Final in late January – drawing two and losing two in the league to date – so they need to put points on the board to move towards securing a ninth year in Division One. Donegal have also had a mixed bag of a campaign to date, having to cope with the absence of some key players including talisman Michael Murphy, but they have continued to make Ballybofey something of a fortress by taking four points from their first two outings there against Kildare and Tyrone.

Monaghan should have taken a win from their trip to a near-empty Mac Cumhaill Park in last year’s league, but despite Conor McCarthy’s hat-trick, they had to settle for a draw on that occasion. Their comeback win over Tyrone two weeks ago, where they made light of a disjointed first-half performance to claim their second win, gives Donegal a bit more leeway in the table and may temper any urgency they have to risk the likes of Murphy or Michael Langan, both of whom helped to turn the tide in the McKenna Cup decider, where Monaghan held on to win by the narrowest of margins. Declan Bonner has given considerable game-time to Conor and Shane O’Donnell, who have caught the eye in recent weeks to add depth to the Donegal panel, while Oisín Gallen looked…