Kerry forward, David Clifford.
By John Harrington
It was a dramatic weekend in the All-Ireland SFC as Phase 2 of the Quarter-Finals produced no shortage of thrills and spills. Here are five of the main talking points from the weekend that was.
All-Ireland SFC Quarter-Final permutations
Round 2 of the All-Ireland SFC Quarter-Finals was always likely to deliver drama, and it did in spades.
The cocktail of packed provincial venues hosting high stakes matches between quality teams proved to be a potent one.
Saturday’s ferociously fought match between Dublin and Tyrone was arguably the best of the Championship up to that point, but it was surpassed on Sunday by the end to end clash of Galway and Kildare which in turn was eclipsed by the sheer drama of Monaghan v Kerry.
Dublin and Galway have already qualified for the All-Ireland semi-finals with two wins from two matches each, but the other two places are still up for grabs and will be decided by the final round of the All-Ireland Quarter-Final series.
The situation is quite straightforward in Group 2 – the clash of Tyrone and Donegal will decide who joins table-toppers Dublin in the All-Ireland semi-finals.
Only a win is good enough for Donegal to secure their place, whereas a draw would suffice for Tyrone thanks to their superior scoring difference.
The All-Ireland SFC Quarter-Final Group tables after two rounds.
The meeting of Dublin and Roscommon is effectively a dead rubber because Dublin are already guaranteed top spot in the group regardless of the result while even a win won’t secure Roscommon a place in the All-Ireland semi-finals.
The situation is less clear-cut in Group 1. Galway have already qualified for the All-Ireland semi-finals but will still be keen to defeat Monaghan in Phase 3 and top the table so they avoid an All-Ireland semi-final clash with defending champions Dublin.
If Monaghan can come away with Pease Stadium with a win they’ll take top spot in the group and will advance to the All-Ireland semi-finals with Galway. A draw would also see Monaghan into the semi-finals.
But if Monaghan lose and Kerry defeat Kildare in Fitzgerald stadium, then it’ll come down to scoring difference between Monaghan and Kerry for a place in the semi-finals.
Monaghan are currently five points better off in this regard than Kerry, which is hardly an insurmountable gap especially considering Kildare have nothing left to play for other than pride going into the final round of the quarter-finals.
Monaghan and Kerry players react after David Clifford's late equalising goal in their Phase 2 All-Ireland SFC Quarter-Final clash.
Monaghan floored by devastating 1-2-3 combination
The Monaghan footballers must have woken up this morning wondering how on earth they didn’t beat Kerry yesterday.
They did so many things right and were the better team in many aspects of the match, but ended up being floored by the late sucker-punch of David Clifford’s injury-time goal.
It’s probably of little consolation to Monaghan, but the goal itself was a thing of beauty that was brilliantly conceived and executed.
James O’Donoghue’s long delivery to the edge of the Monaghan square was much more than just a hit and hope.
He kicked it with plenty of loft and back-spin to give Kieran Donaghy the best possible chance of getting his hands to it.
By the time it reached him Donaghy was backpedalling, slightly off balance, and double-teamed by Monaghan defenders, yet he somehow managed to get a hand to the ball and palm it perfectly into the path of Clifford.
There were six Monaghan players between Clifford and the goal-line and he also had to contend with a narrow shooting angle, yet he somehow pulled off an incredible eye of the needle finish.
Clifford really is an extraordinary talent and it’s going to be a lot of fun to watch him develop further in the coming years.
Rory Beggan nails a long-range free-kick for Monaghan against Kerry in their Phase 2 All-Ireland SFC Quarter-Final clash.
Rory Beggan’s master-class.
Dublin fans will no doubt regard this as heresy, but it’s becoming increasingly easy to make the case that Monaghan’s Rory Beggan is the best goalkeeper in the Gaelic Football right now.
He produced an absolute exhibition of kicking for Monaghan in yesterday’s draw with Kerry that was a joy to behold.
He landed four frees – one of them from all of 63 metres – and his kick-outs were laser-guided too over a variety of distances.
The distance that Beggan gets on his kicks is scarcely believable, especially as he strikes the ball with a languid style that makes it appear he’s clipping the thing up into the air rather than driving it with every fibre of his being.
Stephen Cluxton is the greatest goalkeeper in the history of the game, but so far in this year’s Championship he has been eclipsed by Beggan.
Damien Comer leads his Galway team out before their All-Ireland SFC Quarter-Final Phase 2 clash against Kildare.
Galway get the job done again
With every match they play, this Galway team is looking like a more mature and accomplished outfit.
Yesterday’s victory over Kildare wasn’t the perfect performance, but they seem to have developed the hard-nosed knack of winning matches regardless of the circumstances.
They’ve now beaten three teams who played in Division 1 of the League this year so far in the Championship, and a fourth (Roscommon) who will play Division 1 next year.
In all of those matches they’ve finished strongly to see the game out which is a testament to their self-belief as well as physical endurance.
13 of their players got on the scoresheet yesterday, but there’s still a sense that this Galway team is playing within themselves and has more to give.
If they keep developing at this rate and really fulfil their potential before the campaign is over, then it’s going to take a serious team to stop them.
Dublin's James McCarthy palms a decisive goal to the back of the Tyrone net in the second half of their All-Ireland SFC Phase 2 Quarter-Final.
James McCarthy is Dublin’s beating heart
Another Dublin win, another outstanding performance from James McCarthy.
In a match of fine margins, the Ballymun Kickhams club-man was one of the main reasons that Dublin defeated Tyrone on Saturday, and not just because he scored a decisive goal.
His driving runs, bristling physicality, and accurate passing made him a hugely influential presence during his 68 minutes on the pitch, and it was no coincidence that Tyrone seemed emboldened when he was substituted.
The goal itself summed up everything that is good about the way McCarthy plays the game.
Picking the ball up on the Tyrone ’45 yard line he put his foot on the gas and hand-passed to Brian Fenton who immediately popped the ball back to the on-rushing McCarthy.
His driving run took him past five Tyrone defenders, and though his shot was saved by Niall Morgan, he showed great reflexes and not little bloody-mindedness to palm the rebound to the net while he was in the act of falling.
It was a moment of athleticism, skill, and sheer will to win that summed up the very essence of McCarthy, and why he’s one of the real driving forces in this Dublin team.
