Monaghan …….. 1-11
Fermanagh …. 2-15
Fermanagh secured their place in division 3a of the National Hurling League with a comprehensive seven point win over neighbours Monaghan.
1-07 of Monaghan’s scores came from dead balls while for the Ernemen it was a very different story with eight different players finding the target and landing 1-10 from open play.
Going into the game there was still a possibility of relegation for Fermanagh. If results went against them elsewhere and Monaghan were to defeat them on home soil there was a chance that they would slide straight back down to division 3b.
But by the end of the days hurling Fermanagh had finished third in the table with three wins from their five outings with their only two defeats coming from Donegal and Roscommon, the two teams who finished above them.
Last week it was the team from Connacht who handed out a hammering to Fermanagh at Brewster Park but this was a different Fermanagh team in terms of mental focus that took to the Clones grass.
Fermanagh had mixed news before the throw in. While they welcome back Sean Corrigan, Declan McGarry, Matthew Teague and Francie McBrien they were dealt injury blows when Eoin Morrissey, Fergus Bannon and JP McGarry, arguably Fermanagh’s three best players were all unavailable to take up their place.
But Fermanagh were able to overcome their absence and in truth they were well on the way to victory in the first half when Danny Teague fired in the first goal of the game.
Teague, who was returning from suspension, collected the ball 40 yards from goal and raced through the Monaghan defence to hammer home.
But just before the break Fermanagh conceded a goal to the home side which reduced the margin at the break to just five points.
And it was to be Monaghan who were to start the second half in better form and at one point the deficit was cut to a single score with Fermanagh just three ahead.
But the visitors regained their grip on proceedings and led by Matthew Teague in the half back they started to dominate and get the scores needed to secure the two points and make their survival in division 3a a certainty.
Fermanagh’s second goal was scored by Ciaran Corrigan, who also notched a point. Corrigan was captain of the MacRory Cup this season and Sunday marked his debut for Fermanagh seniors.
His brother Sean landed 0-04 including 0-03 from frees with midfielder Ryan Bogue hitting two frees including a mammoth effort from the sideline and all of 70 yards from the posts.
Daniel Teague finished the day with 1-02, Declan McGarry and Francie McBrien 0-02 each and Brendan McGarry and Martin Beggan a point a piece.
But this was a day in which the whole Fermanagh team excelled and in defence they had some wonderful performers and non more so than Eoin Mahon who has perhaps proved himself to be the stickiest marker in the division.