McShea’s Say: Pat Spillane needs to put a sock in it after Michael Murphy criticism

I read the other day that Pat Spillane had a problem with Michael Murphy's inclusion in the All-Stars shortlist for Footballer of the Year.

I believe that, apart from possibly the All-Ireland final, he did not see Donegal live in any other game this year.

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Murphy was simply magnificent this season, and Donegal would not have progressed to the All-Ireland final without his consistent brilliance. 

This is a flawed and very wrong observation by the former Kerry player.

SFC decider 

On Sunday in Letterkenny, the red-letter day of Donegal club football takes place when Naomh Conaill meet Gaoth Dobhair in this year's senior football final. 

Nothing offers Ireland such frequent cause for communal celebration as football and hurling. 

Through every village, every parish, and every town, the games are played, and the sense of home is enhanced. 

Gaelic games are as integral a part of Irish life as tradition and self-determination. The GAA is all things to all Irish people - a sports organisation, a welfare agency, and a social bridge builder.

The excitement of this championship hasn’t taken us by the throat yet, but don’t tell that to anyone in Gaoth Dobhair or Glenties, as the mood in both areas is defined by the “match” on Sunday. 

Something in the soul of the game gives this time of year its pleasant feel of slowly mounting expectation. The championship, around which the GAA is structured, is special. Win and you take all the glory and look forward to the Ulster Club; lose and your season is over.

Training in September means bitter nights under watery floodlights, the cold catching in your throat, and for some, the constant wondering about the sense of it all. 

But county final day is unique and special. I was fortunate to have played in ten county finals - it would have been eleven only for a dispute about one final which was never played. 

St. Joseph’s were to play Sean MacCumhaills that year, and I can honestly say that it was no fault of the Ballybofey side that the game never took place.

What makes county finals both memorable and special is that you are playing with your school pals, and I can say that the bond forged playing club football is a lifelong one. 

My best friends to this day are the lads that we soldiered with in the club jersey. Sunday’s final is a most difficult game to call. 

Ballyshannon bookmaker Andrew Doherty sees it as an even-money match. While Gaoth Dobhair may have looked more impressive on their march to the final, Naomh Conaill once again demonstrated their resilience, tenacity, and desire when beating an emerging Four Masters side after extra time in their semi-final.

To progress to this stage without their excellent county man, Ciaran Thompson, is no mean achievement for Glenties. 

Ciaran won two ‘Man of the Match’ awards in two of their previous finals, and as the opposition gets tougher, his loss will be felt even more. 

Two of Donegal’s All-Ireland squad, Finbarr Roarty and Daire O’Baoill, may well end up in direct opposition on Sunday, and if so, the winner of what could be an intriguing battle will have a major say in the outcome of this game.

Odhran Mac Niallais is back and going well for Gaoth Dobhair, and apart from his accurate kicking, he will play a creative role in his side’s forward play. 

Naomh Conaill seem to have unearthed another young gem in Max Campbell. The forward has not in any way been restricted by coaching, as Martin Regan, his manager, seems to appreciate that a pennyworth of skill is worth a pound of theory any day. 

John O’Malley is enjoying his football in the centre of the Glenties attack in this campaign, and he will have a major say in the outcome of this final.

I expect this final to be a game of real intensity. It will be physical but not a dirty game. I once remember a manager putting up two lists in our dressing room. 

One was entitled: ‘Our world: winning, discipline, professionalism, team spirit, and unity’. 

The other was ‘Their world: losing, blaming others, playing for oneself, not the team, and relying on luck’. 

He then asked, “Which world do you want to live in?”

While there will probably be no lists on display on Sunday, this is a game that can go any way. 

While I enjoy a wager most Sundays, this is a very difficult final to call, and I will not be having a flutter on Sunday.