Ulster Senior Football Championship preliminary round 
Cavan  2-15 
Monaghan  1-17 
(AET) 

THIS has been a year and a GAA season like no other so it was perhaps fitting that the Ulster Senior Football Championship got under way in Clones on Halloween. 
The Co Monaghan town had an eerie feel about it on Saturday afternoon. 
Every GAA supporter in the North has their own route to Clones, but there was no need for the back roads on Saturday. 
The noise, the colour and the unique atmosphere that the Ulster Senior Football Championship provides was absent. A second wave of the Covid-19 virus robbed this and other sporting fixtures of supporters. 
There were no street vendors selling ‘hats, scarves and headbands’ or burger stalls making you hungry with the scent of fried onions. 
Facemasks, hand sanitizer and socially-distanced work stations were the ‘new normal’ for members of the press. How we long for the return of the half-time tea and sandwiches.
As the hosts made their way out on to the field, there were no cheers for Seamus McEnaney’s side for this their home game against rivals and near-neighbours Cavan. 
The Breffnimen took to the hallowed turf of St Tiernach’s Park to an equally-odd sounding silence.
The match itself had more twists than a Stephen King novel with Monaghan squandering a seven-point while Conor McManus, of all people, missed a glorious chance to win the game at the end of normal time. 
Moments after Rory Beggan looked to have brought the game to penalties, Cavan’s goalkeeper Ray Galligan drilled over a stunning 55-metre free to seal a dramatic win for his side. 
Monaghan’s Christopher McGuinness was also shown a red card in extra-time for an off-the-ball incident to compound a miserable afternoon for the Farney County. 
Cavan, who were relegated to Division Three just one week before beating Division One outfit Monaghan, now host Antrim in the quarter-final at Kingspan Breffni Park this Saturday (1.15pm).
Cavan enjoyed a bright start to the game thanks largely to a brilliantly-struck goal from Oisin Pierson on eight minutes which moved the visitors into an early 1-2 to 0-1 lead. 
It didn’t last long, however, as Monaghan came storming back to take control of proceedings. 
The lively Ryan McAnespie forced Galligan into a smart save, but the Emyvale attacker landed a good point minutes later while a Conor McManus free levelled the game on 17 minutes. 
Monaghan were three ahead when McManus finally got the better of Galligan on the cusp of half-time and a point from centre-back Fintan Kelly gave his side a 1-11 to 1-4 lead at the break. 
Fellow defenders Kieran Duffy and Dessie Ward fisted over points in the third quarter for Monagahan, although the former had a goal at his mercy. Yet, it would prove to be their final scores of the goal as Cavan launched a remarkable fightback. 
With Seamus McEnaney’s side seemingly content to sit back and defend their lead, Cavan chipped away at the deficit with Luke Fortune, Gearoid McKiernan (two), Martin Reilly and Gerard Smith all landing points for the Breffnimen. 
Wing-back Gerard Smith levelled the game at 1-13 each, but McManus had a late free to win the game following a foul on substitute McGuinness. 
Remarkably, his effort curled to the right and wide of the posts as extra-time beckoned. 
Colin Walshe and Andrew Woods nudged Monaghan ahead in extra-time before Martin Reilly bagged Cavan’s second goal. 
Shane Carey (Monaghan) and Chris Conroy (Cavan) traded points before Beggan held his nerve with a late free to level the game once more in injury-time at the end of extra-time. 
There was time for one more play though and Ciaran Branagan’s whistle for a foul gave Galligan the chance to deliver the knock-out blow. From at least 55-metres out, the Cavan ’keeper cleared Beggan’s crossbar with a sublime effort to send the 50 or so Cavan natives within the stadium into raptures. 
When Cavan boss Mickey Graham addressed the media after the game, he summed up his emotions perfectly with one line. 
“What a start to the Championship. . . Wow!” 
The Breffni boss also revealed that his side had practiced penalties at training prior to taking on Monaghan with games in the early rounds finishing on the day. 
However, Galligan’s late, late heroics meant a shoot-out wasn’t needed. 
“We planned for penalties and we had a shoot-out on Thursday night and we had a bit of craic at it,” added Graham. 
“To be honest, I had the names in the book ready for the penalties.
“We had anticipated every scenario and we wanted to be prepared for that. 
“Ray (Galligan) has been around a long time and he showed great nerve and great steel. What a kick. Rory (Breggan) had kicked a wonderful score before that. 
“They (Monaghan) did everything to put him off, but he held his nerve”. 
“It showed the spirit within the squad to bounce-back from the last two disappointing league results. 
“We have been focusing on this game for quite some time. This banishes the memory of the last two league games. 
“I’m delighted for the players because they took a lot of flack for the last two games. It would have been very easy for them to go into their shells. I couldn’t be prouder of them, not just the lads who togged out today, but the 38-man panel. Everyone played their part.” 
Galligan’s match-winning point deserved to be witnessed by thousands of Cavan fans in Clones. 
Their reward though is a home game against Antrim this Saturday at Kingspan Breffni Park. 
The stand and the terraces will, once again, be empty, but if is half as entertaining as last weekend’s fare, those lucky enough to be in attendance and those watching at home will be in for a treat,
This is the Ulster Senior Football Championship, but not quite as we know it. 


MONAGHAN: R Beggan (0-1, 0-1f); K Duffy (0-2), C Boyle, R Wylie; D Ward (0-1), F Kelly (0-1), K O’Connell; D Hughes, K Hughes; R McAnespie (0-1), M Brannigan (0-2), D Wylie; S O’Hanlon (0-1), C McCarthy (0-1), C McManus (1-4, 0-1f). 
Subs: D Malone for D Wylie (29mins), S Carey (0-1, 0-1m) for McCarthy (64mins), N Kearns for O’Hanlon (66mins), C Walshe (0-1) for Brannigan (71mins), A Woods (0-1) for Kelly (80mins), C McCarthy for O’Connell (87mins). 


CAVAN: R Galligan (0-1, 0-1f); J O’Loughlin, K Clarke, K Brady; G Smith (0-1), C Brady, L Fortune (0-2); J Smith (0-1) P Faulkner; M Reilly (1-1), G McKiernan (0-3), O Kiernan (0-1); O Pierson (1-0), S Smith (0-2), C O’Reilly. 
Subs: T Galligan (0-1) for J Smith (HT), N Murray (0-1, 0-1m) for Pierson (42mins), T Donohoe for O’Reilly (45mins), C Conroy (0-1, 0-1 ’45) for C Brady (55mins), E Doughty for Murray (71mins), O Brady for S Smith (81mins), C McTimoney for McLoughlin (90mins), N Murray for Donohue (93mins). 


REFEREE: C Branagan (Down).