2025 AIB Ulster Club Football Senior Championship

[Armagh18]

Slaughtneil absolutely robbed in Derry with that free being moved up for a 2 pointer ffs.

And only one point for this effort. In Armagh, that would have been a 2 pointer for Cullyhanna
https://x.com/SmallerFishGAA/status/1977653413056848343/photo/1

You'd forgive the ref that one as watching the video its next to impossible to tell, but the free itself was for little or nothing snd then to move the ball up for that was disgraceful

[armaghniac]

Since such a free is not likely go next nor near the sideline, perhaps the linesman should stand closer in such situation.

[Main Street]

Dont think so, never been fully explained by our Monaghan brethren. I posted this before but I cycle through it regularly, it's a small village, there's a lot of other clubs within a few mile, remember reading Tydavnet(a neighbouring village), used to have their own team but folded and presumably play for Scotstown now. A planter town originally too. Their dominance is interesting from an outsider perspective.

Scotstown I think went almost twenty years without a championship win before goin onto dominate from the 2010's. It comes down to a lot of focus on youth development and also a cohort of their best ever players emerging (Hughes Brothers, Beggan, McCarthy). For sure, they have a big parish with Scotstown, Tydavent, Knockatallon, Ballinode all in their area with 3 primary schools. Compare that to the Clontibret parish which has 3 separate clubs (2 senior (Clontibret and Cremartin) and one intermediate (Doohamlet). Scotstown did get their shit and had some top class people club people who put some great structures in place for them. That conveyor belt of talent is starting with a new cycle with the likes of Tommy Mallen, Sean Og McElwaine and couple of others  now starting to emerge. They will be big players for Scotstown for years to come.

Sounds like they are indeed the Errigal of Monaghan then

What qualifies them? They've  Truagh Gaels 8m away, Emyvale 6m away, Tyholland 10m, Monaghan Harps 5m away.  All on their Eastern flank, sparse enough population to the west, mostly bogland.

Scotstown is in the parish of Tydavent, it's a huge parish by area. I don't know what the population is in total but the numbers are healthy. It's a very well run club with a history of success at the top levels in Ulster, eg. Sean McCague, and as has been mentioned they have a good youth structure. It's not always about population, all the 4 towns in Monaghan are lagging well behind Scotstown and the other top 'village' teams.  Ballybay, the last town in the top division has been relegated, their youth structure has been cráp for years, nobody coming through to replace the stalwarts who are now either aged or retired.