NFL break gives Donegal a chance to catch their breath – Finnbarr Roarty

Finnbarr Roarty is an All-Star defender but it’s easy to forget that the Donegal ace has just turned 20-years-of-age.

He’s also got a Young Footballer of the Year gong on the mantlepiece back home in Glenties and he’s hit the ground running in 2026 like a man who’s intent on moving to an even higher level.

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Jim McGuinness is using his tenacity in a different way so far this term as his team top the NFL Division 1 standings.

Roarty is being assigned as a man marker on the opposition’s string-pullers and he’s shutting them all down in a no-nonsense kind of fashion.

But what’s really impressive is that he’s been able to still get up the field and contribute on the scoreboard.

Roarty, alongside Michael Murphy and Peadar Mogan were all sprung for the second-half against Galway in Ballyshannon and he again registered as a late Mogan two-pointer rescued a share of the spoils.

Speaking after, and pressed on what he feels has changed this term with Donegal, Roarty says he’s delighted with some of the names McGuinness has replenished his squad with.

One of those is his best buddie and fellow Naomh Conaill clubman, Shea Malone. While he says it’s also been brilliant bouncing off the likes of other youngsters like Conor McCahill, Seanan Carr and Turlough Carr.

“It’s great to see those lads up and they’ve done brilliantly so far,” he said. “They’re all friends as well, teammates from underage.

“Everyone is integrated at this stage so it’s a brilliant mixture. To be honest, the older bucks are good fun too.

“And that’s why it’s probably so easy to settle in. Like, it was the same for me last year. I felt part of it right away.

“Conor McCahill and Shea played again today, Kevin Muldoon came on. Paul O’Hare started today as well, Eoin (McGeehin) seen minutes. Lads are getting used to the tempo at this level.

“As that’s what really is the big thing, the thing that stuck with me was the tempo and the physicality.

“We’re winning games and picking up points as we go in all of that process. So it’s all positive”.

Donegal came out for the second half in Ballyshannon 0-13 to 1-7 down but the likes of Roarty, Murphy and Mogan would eventually help steady matters.

Michael Langan had a spell in the sin bin when he was black-carded, while Stephen McMenamin’s second yellow on 44 minutes meant the hosts were again down to 14.

But Donegal battled on and eventually clawed a share of the spoils thanks to Mogan.

“We dogged it out,” Rorty said on the weekend’s draw with the Tribesmen. “It was a really bad day. Jim was saying to us, we played over 40 minutes of the game down to 14 so it was a real workout in that sense too.

“The bodies will be sore this week, that’s for sure. But we go into the two-week break at a good time.

“We can ease into the start of all of that and then look to really pick it up again. It was a good result considering. A point is better than nothing and we stay unbeaten as well.

“Again, there are a lot of learnings to take from that game, and the one or two others in the last few weeks.

“With back-to-back games, sometimes it’s difficult to actually pause and take real stock of that, the learnings I mean. So that will be part of the process over the next fortnight now too, I’m sure”.

Roarty says that the gap now until Round 6 and an away tangle with Roscommon at Dr Hyde Park will also act as a kind of threshold as the evenings continue to stretch and hopefully, milder and drier weather begins to creep in.

“It’ll kind of bridge a real gap. When we get back at it on the field, in Roscommon, we’ll be half way through March. There is that real stretch to the evenings coming.

“There has been so much rain since Christmas… it feels like it hasn’t stopped. So it would be lovely if we see that all begin to really shift.

“So there are a lot of real positives attached to the break now. Like I said, there will be a serious amount of work to get through but I’m really looking forward to all of that”.