UCD overcame a very physical Monaghan side in another low-key friendly on the pitch outside Belfield Park this afternoon. As with the Kilkenny game the previous weekend, it's hard to see what will have been gained from the tie.
Back after missing the Kilkenny game through injury were Brian Gannon and Robbie Martin, though the former in particular was nearly put out of action again by some very rough Monaghan challenges, one of which (coupled with dissent) saw United reduced to ten men with about 15 minutes remaining. Neil Gallagher and Paul Byrne, only back from the Collingwood disappointment, didn't feature, while Pat McWalter, who also travelled to Limerick, made just a cameo appearance for the last few minutes. Apart from those and the still-injured Rob McAuley, however, it was a full-strength College side, which ultimately proved too much for the Mons to handle.
To say the first half was uneventful would be kind to it. Practically nothing of note happened in the opening period before the game burst into life in the second, starting with a lead goal for UCD not 90 seconds in. Gary Dicker played a superb through ball for Anto Murphy - with Robbie Martin in accompaniment - to run onto, and he deftly chipped over the advancing keeper to score despite the efforts of a covering Monaghan defender, who ended up hoofing the ball into the roof of his own net in his attempts to clear.
The goal was no more than College deserved, as they were generally the better side without creating any clear-cut chances until then. Fifteen minutes later, a Tony McDonnell scissors-kick smacked off the underside of the bar and away with the keeper baeten all ends up. But the second goal was coming, and it arrived midway through the half - Gary Dicker finishing superbly with an angled scissors-kick volley from a cross from the right.
A minute later, it could ahve been 3-0 as Robbie Martin found himself clear through on goal only for the Mons keeper to save at Martin's feet. But it was only postponing the inevitable, as a couple of miuntes later, a low cross from Mick O'Donnell found Tony Mac lurking at the far post, and as Monaghan looked for offside, the captain was left with the simplest of tap-ins.
Monaghan did pull one goal back when a free from the left was touched home past Darren Quigley, but a couple of minutes after, they were reduced to ten men for the latest in a series of overly-physical challenges - Monaghan had already picked up two or three yellows as well.
The quality of the pitch, while markedly better than last week, was still poor and again took away from the exercise. However, given how other teams' pre-seasons are going, we can't complain with our record of two wins and six goals from two games. Next up for the College is the Irish Amateur team on Tuesday evening at the AUL, followed by a home tie against Dundalk on Saturday.
UCD - Quigley (Whelan?); Mahon, Gannon, McNally, Kenna (Kierans); McDonnell, Anto Murphy, Dicker, O'Donnell; Adrian Murphy (Brophy), Martin (McWalter)
