Macs View: Referees need more support with new rules

I had the pleasure of watching Sean MacCumhaills and Glenswilly on television and MacCumhaills had a super first half, they played some cracking football.

But fair play to Glenswilly, they battled back without Michael Murphy and could have won in the end.

And I wanted to say a huge well done to Ryan Walsh from my own club who had a brilliant game with the TG4 cameras on him.

It’s a hard job to do at the moment. I saw the controversy in Fermanagh in the Division 1 league final between Derrygonnelly Harps and Erne Gaels of Belleek.

It would be a neighbour club of ours down in Bundoran in Belleek and it was disappointing because Derrygonnelly hit two two pointers that were inside the arc so it was sad for Belleek to miss out because of that.

I know our own club of Realt Na Mara are currently objecting to what happened in their first Intermediate match after scoring a two pointer, but they were only given one point for it.

We were beaten by a point then so it made a difference but I don’t know what is going to happen with that.

It isn’t the fault of the referees, they need more support in doing this role.

They need support from their umpires, but they were also looking for guidance on the decisions as well so the communication is also key.

We’ve been treated to a good championship so far after the county’s disappointing defeat in the All-Ireland final. We all got a great buzz from the run to the final and it was a magical time as the side played 11 championship games.

I did feel it was harsh that the club championship started so soon after the final but they have fixtures to squeeze in and I was on the county executive long enough to know how difficult a job it can be, a couple of weeks rest might have been good for those players but it’s over and done with now so we just have to get on with it.

There were plenty of surprises last weekend and Kilcar coughing up a ten point lead to Downings was probably the result of the weekend.

Eoin McHugh going off probably made the difference as he was a big loss for the Towney men.

Aodh Ruadh couldn’t put it up to St Eunan’s but the Letterkenny side seem to be getting close to having everyone available that is fit, they were still missing Shane O’Donnell and Caolan Ward, but they were stronger than the week before.

Big Michael Langan made a huge difference for St Michael’s as they had a massive win against Glenfin.

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St Eunan’s shouldn’t have too much bother with St Naul’s despite them having the three county players. St Eunan’s got back to good form last week and will be hard stopped as this championship moves on.

Gaoth Dobhair have been going well and going to Magheragallon for any team, and getting two points isn’t easy.

Aodh Ruadh haven’t been setting the world alight so I would have to go for Gaoth Dobhair in that game.

Ciarán Thompson is a huge loss for Naomh Conaill, but they still have the experience and know-how when it comes to winning, so they should have enough for Downings, despite them getting a great result at the weekend.

It will be a tight battle in Downings, but Naomh Conaill should shade it.

I expect Four Masters to bounce back after the defeat to Termon when they host Glenfin. They’re a very young side but they got some devastating news during the week after the tragic death of young Dylan Ward.

Glenfin are a tight team with Frank McGlynn, or steady Eddie as I call him. He’s a great footballer and he’s going well with them, so they won’t give anything away easily, but I still think Four Masters could take the win.

A lot of the other games look a lot closer on paper, especially in Fintra.

Kilcar won’t have it easy against Killybegs this weekend, and I’ve been told that Eoghan ‘Ban’ Gallagher has been playing out of his skin.

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It’s a local derby so it’s going to be a tough battle, and I have the feeling it has all the hallmarks of a drawn game.

St Michael’s and Termon will be another close one. It’s always difficult to win at the Bridge, and I think they will shade this contest. We can’t forget Termon’s form in the league and you don’t win Division 1 without being a good side. It’s very tight to call, but St Michael’s at home are never easy to beat.

Sean MacCumhaills did that in the first week, with both sides missing their star men and I was particularly impressed with how MacCumhaills performed once again.

The football they played was very good, they’re very fit and they are well coached. Going to Ardara won’t be easy and they ran Naomh Conaill to a point, which I expected.

I feel it’s a more even game than people might think.

For me, Dungloe are the form team in the county at present, but it’s a whole different test this weekend when they are away to Glenswilly.

From what I gathered about Glenswilly, I would assume Michael Murphy will take the field and that would make me favour them but I feel that could be the game of the weekend.