McShea’s Say: Slow-burning SFC needs to spark from this point on 

The SFC has not caught fire just yet. After four rounds in, the football has been at best earnest but lacking in flair.

No team has yet appeared to be ahead of the posse and several sides must believe that this could be their year.

On a personal basis, my home team Ballyshannon have had a campaign to forget. Four defeats in their four matches is a surprise to many, and several football people have asked me just what is going on at Aodh Ruadh?

The honest answer to that is that I don’t know, but football is cyclical, and for a town with a rich history of championship football, the results this year are a huge disappointment.

Our neighbours out the road in Bundoran are also struggling to a degree. But it is most encouraging to see Four Masters make positive strides.

And the number of young players there who have the ability to play Donegal senior county football in the not too distant future is a tribute to the exceptional coaches in Donegal Town.

I do know that the underage structures in both Ballyshannon and Bundoran are also very good with many parents giving of their time. But it does seem that it will take some time for both to become big hitters at senior club level again.

The championship in Tyrone is straight knockout. Here, I think that four group matches are a bit much and the old system of home and away in the first round of knockout had much more jeopardy and excitement.

After Ciaran Thompson’s injury in the All-Ireland final, all Donegal fans will hope that Oisin Gallen’s injury last week will not result in a long-term delay for the MacCumhaills man.

There were various reports on the seriousness and nature of it on Sunday but since then it seems like it’s a badly swollen ankle. That, in a way, is positive news.

Donegal’s other premier forward, Michael Murphy, has been unavailable for his club so far and you have to ask the question, if he doesn’t appear at the weekend in their preliminary round quarter-final clash with Four Masters, just what is going on there?

There was word that Michael played through the pain barrier against Kerry so maybe he’s needed that respite as well.

Rory McIlroy’s spectacular brilliance in winning the Irish Open on Sunday at the K Club was brilliant viewing.

His excellence, as a wonderful player, is well documented and he now holds the position of World number two.

But I simply marvelled at the bottle he showed when the chips were down, and I thought that the fact that Rory, who is a nephew of the former Armagh GAA forward, the late, great Mickey McDonald, was a factor in him holing that magical putt on the eighteenth green to get himself into the play-off.

This was compulsive viewing and after speaking to many who watched what was an epic, it will live long in the memory when great sporting occasions are on the agenda.

Rory is one of golf’s most charismatic figures with an appeal extending way beyond his sport.

As a child, he was blessed with the drive and self-belief to make it to the top. His infectious optimism, willpower and flair, coupled with an incredible competitive instinct, see him renowned as a player of great passion.

At 36, Rory is best known for his amazing contributions to the European Ryder Cup team, and in his interview moments after his latest success, he was already looking forward to this year's Ryder Cup in a few weeks.

He loves team golf, and if ever he needed to show his fighting spirit, it was at the 72nd hole on Sunday.

After his second shot to the reachable par five, there was plenty of conjecture about his ability to hole that putt to stay in contention for the Irish Open title.

In analysing the source of Rory’s greatness as a player, he never allows himself to be satisfied because, in his mind, satisfaction is the enemy of success.

His whole approach is to delay gratification and somehow stay hungry.

It is the way of the super achiever: the more success, the less there will be to celebrate. I believe that one of Rory’s gifts is his ability, when he needs to, to turn off emotion.

No doubt early in his career, he learned that strong emotions unchecked adversely affect coordination, focus, and generally impede winning.

His ability to shut down all of that was a major reason why he made that last putt on 18. Genius is delicate, and it doesn’t come with an instruction manual.

We are most fortunate to see the genius that is Rory McIlroy. It seems that he may partner Shane Lowry in the Ryder Cup. If that happens, we can be assured of more fireworks and spectacular entertainment.