The pen pics provided in GAA match programmes can be notoriously fickle. Take Donegal’s Ryan McHugh for instance.
Apparently, he was a spritely 25-year-old when he featured against Armagh in Ballybofey, but the Kilcar ace had aged three years by the time he lined out against Derry in last Sunday’s Ulster SFC final in Clones.
Even allowing for the odd discrepancy, the Monaghan teams selected by Seamus McEnaney for their two Championship outings to date were older than any other side in Ulster.
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The combined age of Monaghan’s starting 15 against Down was 415 - an average of 27.6. The average age of the team moved over 28 when Shane Carey (30) replaced Andrew Woods (22) for their semi-final defeat to Derry.
Monaghan legend Paul Finlay called time on his inter-county career at 33. The likes of Conor McManus (34) and Darren Hughes (35) are already passed that milestone while impact subs Drew Wylie and Karl O’Connell are aged 35 and 34 respectively.
Finlay knows a core group of players have gone to the well many times for Monaghan over the last decade and he says they’ve only so many chances left at the highest level.
“A big part of the current Monahan squad have been around for a long time,” said Finlay.
“If this isn’t their last hurrah, then it will be next year - they can’t go on forever.
“There’s no doubt about it, they don’t have too many more opportunities. You are talking about six, seven, maybe eight players that have been around for a while. To keep coming back, year in, year out, it isn’t getting any easier for those guys.
“You would have to expect that, for the core group of players who have been together for the last 10 years, time is running out. There would have been a feeling that the team was good enough to go and take an Ulster title this year so that would have been a big disappointment.
“No matter what age you are, you should play like it is your last year because you never know.”
In order for McEnaney’s men to prolong their season, they’ll have to overcome Mayo in Castlebar on Saturday afternoon.
Last year’s beaten All-Ireland finalists clinched a two-point victory in Clones when the sides met in the League.
Being rerouted via the Qualifiers wasn’t part of either team’s agenda and James Horan’s side have much greater experience of navigating the ‘back-door’ series.
However, just two wins would see Mayo or Monaghan back in an All-Ireland SFC quarter-final and Finlay says that should be enough to refocus the minds of the players.
“It doesn’t get much tougher than Mayo, but it is probably a good thing for Monaghan to avoid the other Ulster teams, Armagh and Tyrone,” added Finlay.
“They landed the other Division One team in Mayo and an away draw also. It is ultra difficult.
“I don’t think too many from outside the camp will be giving them much of a chance. “Hopefully, both teams bring out the best in each other and it should be a belter of a game. If Monaghan bring their best, they'll certainly have a chance. Unfortunately, they’ve just been a bit inconsistent this year.”
“There’s no doubt that it was a huge blow to get knocked out of Ulster. There still is a serious carrot dangling in front of all the teams who got knocked out of the provincial Championships - you are still in the All-Ireland series.
“It is probably one of the most open All-Irelands in years.
“Monaghan would feel like, with a big win in Mayo, they could get their season back on track.”
The Ballybay clubman, who won two Ulster titles with Monaghan in 2013 and 2015, admits the Farney weren’t good enough on the day after losing their provincial semi-final to newly-crowned champions Derry by four points at the Athletic Grounds last month.
“I think the final was a hard watch from a neutral perspective, taking Monaghan out of it.
“It was a hard slog and both teams mirrored each other and decided not to give an inch,” said Finlay.
“For those of us who are in Ulster and know how difficult it is to win an Ulster title, it was intriguing.
“It was difficult thinking Monaghan could have been there and Monaghan and Donegal games are always tight.
“Anytime you are beaten in Ulster when you feel you’ve a decent shot at it, you feel you’ve maybe let one slip.”
“Monaghan weren’t good enough on the day in the semi-final and Derry went on to win it. It was an outstanding Ulster title for Derry - they beat Tyrone, Monaghan and Donegal.
“Nobody can take that away from them, it certainly wasn’t an easy one.”
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