Davy Burke hails 'really, really good' Roscommon after league win over Monaghan

It was billed as a crucial four-pointer at Dr Hyde Park, but in the end there was no denying that Roscommon were the masters as Monaghan were put to the sword in Sunday's Division 1 encounter, with Rossies boss Davy Burke more than pleased with the effort his side put in.

The Connacht outfit had just one point to show from their three games played in advance of their clash with a Farney selection who had one win registered prior to their trip west.

A superb performance by Enda Smith and Shane Cunnane's early second-half goal were the catalysts for the hosts as they notched their first victory of the campaign.

It was a sobering afternoon for a depleted Monaghan outfit that named Conor McManus among their substitutes, but they were outgunned by a hungrier home side.

After the talk last week about 65 training sessions and not having a full squad to work with, Burke was much happier when he spoke to RTÉ Sport after the 1-16 to 0-07 triumph.

"I'm very happy, any day you come out with a decent win like that in Division 1 you'd have to be happy with that," he said.

"From the very start our attitude was on it. We were really, really good today.

"Look, that's not the real Monaghan; you play Monaghan in June or July and you are looking at a different outfit. We can only beat what's in front of us, we are delighted with that today."

What also pleased Burke was his side's defensive showing, this after conceding a high score against Dublin last weekend.

"Our defence had to tighten up. Conceding 1-19 as we did last week won't win you any game. We had to shore that up. Fair play to Enda [Smith] and Daire [Cregg] up top but I'm very happy with Niall Higgins and David Murray just as much [in defence]."

While the Rossies boss is getting more and