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Monaghan will be a threat this year in ulster

When Cavan beat them it was relegation they were set for, now they beat Fermanagh and they'll be a threat in Ulster? Neither I reckon, although they should be favourites for promotion as they have a strong team on paper. Todays game for Cavan will tell if we are truly in the promotion hunt...

Hopefully Cavan do get promoted, along with Monaghan, if for no other reason than to meet in a Division 3 final in Croker. Monaghan wouldn't get caught off the hop in that one and a certain know-all would be put back in his horsebox

Good to have a much needed away win under our belts. That's a monkey off our backs and we should be looking to continue it from here. Couldn't make it tonight, but by the sounds of Northern Sound, Monaghan should have won by more. Fermanagh were down a few key players, so we shouldn't get carried away with this one.

You might have a point if it were not for the fact that Monaghan have form for this sort of thing. They are the Russell Crowe of the GAA!

Down with this sort of thing! And what sort of thing would that be Myles? Give us the facts. Has McManus ever been booked before, let alone get a straight red card?

[From someone who was at it there was only one team diving and that was Monaghan, such a bunch of tramps I've never seen the like of. I hope ye enjoyed the medicine ye got for it.]

This game no longer makes sense. Anybody watching Cavan v Monaghan? What in the name of God happened?

You mean the red cards/ diving Cavan f'ckers/gullible ref  or what Nudie Hughes says  'we picked the wrong night to turn up in Cavan'?

From someone who was at it there was only one team diving and that was Monaghan, such a bunch of tramps I've never seen the like of. I hope ye enjoyed the medicine ye got for it.

Ach now Itch, you're getting a bit carried away with the tramps talk. This goes down as one of the worst matches I've ever attended. Cavan got under the  Monaghan men's skin, were up for it more, blanketed the defence á la Donegal against Dublin '12 and targetted McManus and Hughes. When McManus reacted and was sent off there wasn't a Plan B. Monaghan were caught in the long grass and weren't good enough to meet the challenge, even when cleaning up in midfield in the 3rd quarter. Fair dues to Cavan, the end justifies the means and there were some very good displays, in particular from McKeever and Mackey.

And there was diving, by both sides and it's horrible to see. The weather wasn't conducive to silky skills but there were so many wides, fumbles, missed passes (mostly by Monaghan), that you'd be forgiven for thinking it was a Junior Z match.

The ref had a difficult job given the conditions but he didn't come close to being inter-county standard. He didn't favour one side more than the other, but his calls were wrong more often than right. It was beginning to look we were going to have an early Kilmacud 7s towards the end.

The economically nonviable statelet most of us in Ulster live in has better things to be spending money on than a 40,000 seater stadium in the suburbs of Belfast. It won't add much to the economy of West Belfast, apart from a few bumper days for a few pubs. It will arguably be less able to deal with traffic than Clones - we could be walking half way to Lisburn to get to the cars on the one day a year it will be full. Less, not more, people are going to matches. It's a trophy to lobbyists that have campaigned for it years. As others have said in the thread there are enough good venues, including Casement as it is.

Not quite sure what that still photo proves?

Challenge for a high ball. Aye right. Keogh is in possession. The only thing missing is the clothes pegs.

And the result.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/monaghan_gaa/8425773527/in/photostream/

Booking Stephen O'Neill for challenging for a high ball and then ignoring Tyrone players being clearly pulled to the ground was always going to cause anger.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/monaghan_gaa/8425772979/in/photostream/

Never a yellow.

Not surprised at the retirement and good luck to him. Last season he was well short of his form during the Tyrone Sam years. He came off a big second best in big tackles repeatedly. Agree he's the type of player you'd want on your side, but what does it say about Tyrone that he was started this year? Surely there was better around.

As a pundit he is someone who could be shot with a ball of his own shite over and over again.

As an everyday person though there's not many other acts of selflessness you can do at least if you're not dead from doing so. A brilliant gesture.

Agree with your summation of his punditry, and yes, fairs dues, it was a very decent deed.

Leave the cute hoorism to the Kerry boys, Sam has to be the aim for you lot in 2013, especially with an Ulster final appearance guaranteed.

Like your attitude. We're not showing enough ambition.

Mind you I was  looking forward to getting a crack at knocking Donegal off their perch, like we did in '93 in the 1st round. Suppose it'll have to wait until the final in Clones, or Croker, if they don't make it to the Ulster Final.

few shillings on monaghan to make the final you'd have to say.

Agree, definitely the easy side and Monaghan will learn from the 2nd half collapse in the semi this year.

Hats off to Mayo for the sporting attitude after their defeat in the final today. It surely must have been difficult; as a Monaghan man I can only imagine the hurt they must feel.

Donegal, a side we would have been confident about beating a couple of years ago, have obviously developed immensely and were just too strong and got off to a blistering start.

Deserved champions, well done...when the players stop listening to Jimmy, maybe he'd like to come down our way.

Haven't followed the thread, so this might seem a complete non-sequitur.

Mayo were a joy to watch last Sunday, and also against Down. A lot to the online support base might be a tad on the ar**hole side, which is why they come in for such derision when they collapse, but that was as good  a display as I've seen in a long time. Tired but held on, and a bit of the old cynicism didn't detract from an overall very skillful display. Fair dues.

Which sets it up for a very grand Finale.

Cork have that physical element that will count against Donegal. Cork should make the final.

...and if my predictions are as accurate as this weekend's, Donegal will do it.

What gets me about this is that all the experts now say we are drastically over-rated but also say it will be a failure if we don't beat the All-Ireland favourites.
Can't have it both ways.

Can't see Kildare being good enough to beat an excellent Cork side. If they do it will really throw the whole thing open, which would be great.

Sometimes you can want something too much and look to poach players for positions that may be lacking in terms of quality. This is how Kildare are perceived. Anyroad it would they turn Cork over.