McShea's Say: Whatever about the scheduling, Donegal can make this a special season

It is always by winning the All-Ireland that you measure the greatness in Gaelic Football.

And in recent years, managers have battered themselves into decline in pursuit of Sam Maguire. Even those who have won it are only briefly satisfied, for within a few months, the mania and the quest must begin again. The grail becomes immortality, and then it is taken away again.

But on leaving Ballybofey on Sunday after Donegal beat Leinster champions Louth in quite emphatic fashion on a 2-22 to 0-12 scoreline, I was convinced that it would take an exceptional side to dilute Donegal’s prospects of winning our third ever All-Ireland next month.

I know that sometimes sport doesn’t work out, and sometimes youth just doesn’t work out either, but promise is always a joy, and this Donegal side is blessed with players of incredible pace, who have so early in their careers fulfilled exceptional potential.

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Football is unique as a sport in that you can win games playing badly, I don’t mean playing below your own standards, I simply mean not playing as well as the opposition. Louth played very well in the first half of our match in Ballybofey, but in most games, the side playing better almost always wins, but in the unique democracy of football, the last can quite often be first but at half time, with Donegal 1-6 to 0-7 in front, at MacCumhaill Park, I was very confident that Donegal would prevail.

Some fans wondered what or why there was such a wonderful transformation in Donegal’s performance after the interval last Sunday. I believe that Louth battled manfully in an exciting first half, but the extreme effort that they put into staying with Donegal could not be sustained.

As I noted, Donegal are blessed with several young players with pace to burn, and their quick transition from defence to attack makes them extremely difficult to contain over 70 minutes.

From the first minute, Brendan McCole at full-back did a superb marking job on Louth’s playmaker and leading scorer Sam Mulroy and without Mulroy delivering a big game, Louth were always going to struggle to keep the scoreboard operator busy.

In goal, Shaun Patton was yet again superb, and his quality goal kick was instrumental in setting up Donegal’s decisive first goal. Oisin Gallen had a wonderful match, hitting five points from play, and showed why he won his coveted All-Star award last year.

His probing pass to Ciaran Thompson was a vision of the highest order, and Thompson, playing his 50th consecutive championship game, scored an excellent goal.

Michael Murphy also has a very good third quarter and his quality two-pointer gave the spectator and his teammates a great lift before he was correctly called ashore to ensure his fitness for next Saturday The reception afforded the Glenswilly man as he left the pitch is a clear indication of the leading role that Michael has assumed since returning to the county squad this year.

So, it is back to Croke Park on Saturday for our quarter-final joust with Monaghan. I did express the opinion that after Louth beat Meath in the Leinster final, we would have had the edge against the Royal County, but Meath play Galway and we will no doubt face a formidable challenge against Monaghan.

A real positive for Donegal is that the team are now very close to being injury-free, so vital with only three games left before the championship is decided. It is well documented that Monaghan seem to relish every opportunity that they get to play Donegal, and they have an inherent belief that they can turn Donegal over every time they meet.

Their most famous win was back in 2013 when Monaghan relieved us of our Ulster crown. Our most recent meeting saw Donegal win a close encounter by a narrow two-point margin, 0-23 to 0-21, but in the belief that if the weather is reasonable in Dublin on Saturday evening, the wide confines of Croke Park should allow this Donegal team to e express themselves with a display of expansive football.

No doubt Rory Beggan’s strategic kicking and his ability to deliver two-pointers will have got a mention at training in Donegal this week, as will Conor McCarthy’s penetrating runs from the Monaghan half back line, while Jack McCarron - whether he starts or enters the fray - will cause problems for our defence with his sharp footballing brain.

For Donegal, this has been a special season. I am sure training is minimal now; mental fitness and freshness are the key. No doubt if players are strong in their minds, they will be strong on the pitch. The status of this footballing season is not in doubt as it has featured astounding football, exceptional competition, staggering determination and ceaseless tension. Let us hope that this weekend brings more of the same and that we are a step closer to a return to Croke Park by six o'clock on Saturday evening.