Dublin can take nothing for granted against Monaghan

SPECTATORS could find out what happens when an unstoppable force like Dublin meets an immovable object like Monaghan’s Conor McManus in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship on Saturday, reports Hayden Moore.

Second-half flurries were a trademark of the Dublin team which scaled to great heights over the previous decade, with All-Ireland titles won on quick starts and late, late clutch moments.

Stephen Cluxton’s kick into Hill 16 to pull the game out of the fire in 2011, Kevin McManamon’s goal in the 2013 semi-final or Eoin Murchan’s epic goal in the 2019 replay.

These are just some of the clutch moments which defined Dublin’s eight All-Ireland titles since 2011, including a record-breaking six-in-a-row.

In 2021, the seemingly perennial champions were beaten after 45 games without a loss and dumped out of the All-Ireland by Mayo in the semi-final.

There was no weathering the storm or moment of sheer brilliance.

Mayo were simply better and cracked the code – they had the epic second-half flurry.

It was the same last year against Kerry. While Dublin seemed to be gathering momentum in the second half, it came to a halt in a moment of Kerry magic with the final kick of the game.

Seanie O’Shea hit a massive long-range free from well outside the 45-metre line to send the Kingdom past the Dubs and into the All-Ireland final.

After being relegated to Division Two in the league as well, they looked a shadow of the team which won eight celtic crosses in 10 seasons and it appeared as though the Dublin dynasty had collapsed.

However, Dublin have been steadily building in 2023, obtaining league promotion, winning a 13th Leinster in succession and massive names such as Cluxton, Paul Mannion and Jack McCaffrey returned to the panel.

Some of the conversation leading into the All-Ireland quarter final was that Dublin have not got out of second gear, and if they could hit top-speed like they had in previous years.

Despite a shaky first half against Mayo, the Boys in Blue got back to their very best in a second-half blitzkrieg which was associated with days of past and appeared to awaken the sleeping giant once again.

Dublin’s pressure was unrelenting after the break, and Mayo could not get to grips with their unstoppable force.

In the other quarter-final, Monaghan relied on the brilliance of 36-year-old Conor McManus to come up with the trumps once again and pushed the game against Armagh into extra-time.

McManus made his senior debut in 2007 and his services are still being relied upon to do the damage when Monaghan need it most, with his introduction from the bench swinging the quarter-final in their favour.

The Clontibret O’Neills man scored 0-4.

With Armagh shutting up shop and only two-minutes on the clock in extra-time, McManus drew them out and manufactured a free.

Pressure reached fever pitch as McManus stood over the resulting free, but he was unflappable, kicking it into Hill 16 to bring the game to penalties – also kicking two spot kicks to win the game.

Manager Vinny Corey described McManus as Monaghan’s “greatest ever clutch player” after the game, and the immovable object does not seem to be going anywhere soon.

When it comes to this stage of the All-Ireland, it is clutch moments under an enormous amount of pressure in front of 82,300 people at GAA HQ that wins games.

Whoever wilts to the pressure typically comes out on the wrong side of history and with the Farney county hunting for their first ever All-Ireland title, the cards seem to be stacked against them once again.

Dublin play Monaghan in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship semi-final at 5.30pm on Saturday in Croke Park.

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