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15th Jul 2017

The internet belonged to Carlow as Leinster minnows scare bejaysus out of Monaghan

#CarlowRising

Mikey Stafford

They are a bit different down Carlow direction.

A small county tucked away in the South East, they often go overlooked – despite gifting the nation Saoirse Ronan, Sean O’Brien and Kathryn Thomas.

Their footballers have been impossible to miss this summer – defeating Wexford, scaring Dublin and then accounting for fellow minnows London and Leitrim in the qualifiers.

For the first time since 1944 they had recorded three Championship wins in the one summer.

Hell, they are so keen for you to come watch them they have players selling tickets in SuperValu two hours before throw-in.

No one gave them much of a chance as they welcomed a resurgent Monaghan to Netwatch Dr Cullen Park – a genuine Division 1 contender against a side who could not get out of Division 4 – but the Leinster men had other ideas.

A packed ground saw the underdogs tear into their vaunted opponents – keeping things very tight in the first half before turning the screw after the break.

Alas, it was not to be, as a Fintan Kelly fisted goal with four minutes of normal time remaining settled things in favour of Malachy O’Rourke’s men. They ran out 1-12 to 1-7 winners, which was not a fair reflection on a terrific Carlow effort.

The Ulster men were made to work very hard for it, with Gary Kelly raising a green flag for Carlow in the second half to give the home side a two-point lead.

It was a superb effort – with the imperious Brendan Murphy driving them on from midfield and Paul Broderick keeping them in touch with some first-class free-taking.

In the end their brave efforts were not enough, but their supporters certainly enjoyed the ride, using #CarlowRising to document their journey.

LISTEN: The GAA Hour – Klopp in Croker, flop in Kildare and the ‘worst fans’ award?