Eamon McEneaney could trace the journey of his sporting career through the colour of the gear-bags he was hauling over his shoulder on the way to training in any given season.The colours changed over the years. A Monaghan shade of blue here, a Louth pop of red there. McEneaney lives in Louth and raised his family there, but in his native Castleblayney he is forever regarded as a son of Monaghan. He’s a former Monaghan player, a former Monaghan senior and under-21 manager, a former Louth senior manager, and the current Louth minor manager – so it’s fair to say McEneaney knows the pulse of football within the neighbouring counties. He has no direct skin in the game this Sunday, but that hasn’t always been the case.On March 11th, 2012, McEneaney left home and made his way to Clones to manage Monaghan in a Division 2 league match.His son, Jim, pulled the same door behind him that morning to link up with the Louth squad for their league fixture – an away trip to Clones to face Monaghan.“It was an unusual day, both of us leaving the house and going off in different directions for the same game,” recalls Eamon.“I was probably a little uneasy with things because I knew it was likely he’d be playing at some stage, and I’d never managed against him before. I’d managed him so many times with the Geraldines, so that was an unusual day all right.”Jim came off the bench and scored two points for Louth, but the visitors were reduced to 14 men during the second half and Monaghan ran out comfortable victors.Jim McEneaney playing in a league Division 2 match for Louth in 2012. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho And of course the world keeps spinning. Only a couple of weeks ago they both stood on the same sideline in Cullyhanna – father and son, Louth minor manager and Louth selector – as the Wee County’s youngsters won an All-Ireland Tier 2 MFC semi-final, beating Monaghan.[ Transfer window – Frank McNally on the closing stages of a dramatic GAA summerOpens in new window ]“It has been great to have Jim involved. He wanted to dip his toe in the managerial and coaching area so he’s been a big help. It is always a strange one coming up against your home county, but when you are with a team you just have to do your job and get on with it.”Eamon McEneaney is one of Monaghan’s most decorated players. A three-time Ulster title winner (1979, 1985, 1988) during a golden period in the county’s history, he was also part of the Farney’s only Division 1 title (1985) and enjoyed county and provincial success with Castleblayney Faughs, too. But his story has been tangled up in Louth for decades now, where he’s been living for 36 years.He continued to work in Scoil Mhuire na mBuachaillí in Castleblayney until 2021 when he retired as principal. Over the years he has had stints managing the Faughs, he’s been heavily involved with the Geraldines club and more recently coached Dundalk Institute of Technology.But there were also two terms as Monaghan senior manager, either side of a four-year spell in charge of the Louth seniors. Both counties will view Sunday’s quarter-final as a winnable game – a rare chance to contest an All-Ireland semi-final.Eamon McEneaney (right) and then Wicklow manager Mick O'Dwyer in 2007. Photograph: Tom Honan/Inpho McEneaney knows a thing or two about semi-finals. In the dying seconds of the 1985 All-Ireland one, and with Kerry leading by the minimum, Monaghan were awarded a difficult free a couple of metres beyond the 45-metre line.Their season hung on the kick. Without hesitating, McEneaney placed the ball on an agreeable tuft of grass, eyed the posts and smacked it over with the black spot. The ball was still travelling as it sailed between the posts. Drawn match. Replay. It remains an iconic score in the annals of Monaghan football.“It’s funny, people would have talked to me about the free over the years, but when you thought about the game, more than anything else you’d have regretted not winning it because we had a really good team at the time,” he recalls.Kerry won the replay by six points. Monaghan made it back to a semi-final in 1988 but were comprehensively beaten by Cork. It would take them 30 years to reach the last four again, with 2018 and 2023 the county’s only semi-final appearances since.Louth were last in an All-Ireland semi-final in 1957. So, that’s what is at stake this weekend.Eamon McEneaney in the final seconds of the 2008 Leinster quarter-final, which Louth lost to Dublin. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho Having managed the Faughs to consecutive county titles in the 1990s, McEneaney was appointed joint boss of the Monaghan seniors alongside Seán McCague for one season in 1996 before taking the gig on his own until 1999.[ Defiant Louth end 53-year wait for championship win over DublinOpens in new window ]Monaghan won an All-Ireland B Championship in 1998. McEneaney was also double-jobbing as the Farney’s under-21 boss at the time, and they won the Ulster title in 1999, the county’s first at that level in 18 years.When he next appeared on the intercounty radar, he was named as successor to Val Andrews as Louth manager in advance of the 2006 season.They won a Division 2 league title in his first year and were also crowned Tommy Murphy Cup champions. On their way to the latter title, Louth beat Monaghan by six points in the quarter-final.“That was the first time I was on the other side of the fence,” he says.[ Darragh Ó Sé: Dublin are on a high, but Galway have been building quietly and fear nobodyOpens in new window ]But the league meeting in 2012 stands out. He’s not sure if a photo was taken of the two that day in Clones, dad kitted out in Monaghan gear and son wearing the red of Louth, but even at the time Eamon knew his time as Farney manager wouldn’t be stretching beyond that season.With Jim breaking through for Louth and a rebuild under way in Monaghan with players Eamon had blooded, the time felt right for a fresh voice to carry it forward.McEneaney as Monaghan manager in 2011. 'I’d normally be supporting Louth, except when they play Monaghan.' Photograph: Morgan Treacy/Inpho