McShea's Say: Donegal’s position now a precarious one

A 1-20 to 0-15 defeat in Clones on Sunday dictated that Donegal would return home empty-handed, and now the county’s grip on our Division 1 status is grows more precarious by the week.

Sometimes in defeat a team can claim that they were unlucky not to have taken something from a game, but this was not the case against Monaghan as the winners dictated the second half and were deserving victors.

Donegal’s two defeats in this campaign were both by eight points, and in the Tyrone game and last Sunday’s match, it was difficult to take too many positives for Paddy Carr’s team.

Talks believed to be underway as Donegal GAA Academy fall-out rumbles on

Donegal GAA will not be commenting publicly for at least a week on the issue that has seen activities at its Academy put on hold

The absence of several regular players has offered an opportunity for a host of fringe ones to make an impact but apart from Mark Curran from Dungloe few have shown that they possess the quality to deliver on the big stage.
Donegal, with the wind advantage in the first half in Clones, played reasonably well but a combination of poor shooting and solid defensive work by Monaghan limited their effectiveness.

Leading 0-7 to 0-6 at the break and facing that difficult breeze in the second half, it seemed that Donegal would need at least one goal to take the spoils. The team did create a gilt-edged opportunity to hit the Monaghan net, but Jamie Brennan’s shot crashed off the crossbar and the vigilant home defence cleared their lines.

Brennan’s pace sees him get on the end of goal opportunities, but he must start hitting daisy cutters as few keepers can get down quickly enough to stop that type of finish. When a team concedes 1-20 it is almost impossible to win, and it is a genuine cause for concern that Donegal’s defence conceded 21 times against Monaghan.

It is another serious blow to Donegal’s prospects of survival to have to plan without Patrick McBrearty in the immediate future because of his surgery for a hamstring tear. Even if he was not scoring at will, his presence meant that the opposition always deployed two defenders to watch him, and in doing so it had the effect of creating space for the other Donegal forwards.

It was encouraging to see Michael Langan, Oisin Gallen and Eoin ‘Bán’ Gallagher back against Monaghan. While they all lacked match practice, they played well with Langan and Gallen hitting nine points between them.

Conor O’Donnell also had a good second half and has cemented his place on the side going forward. Hugh McFadden battled well and showed that he is coming back to his best with much needed match practice, while it is to be hoped that Peadar Mogan will play for 70 minutes against Galway.

On his introduction against both Tyrone and Monaghan, Peadar injected much needed pace to his team. The return of Ryan McHugh and Ciaran Thompson, hopefully sooner rather than later, would be another boost to a side that is clearly struggling at this time.

Now it is a question of scrapping for survival if Donegal are to retain their first division status, and a win over Galway is a must if Donegal are to pull themselves clear of the relegation zone.

This is another four pointer for the home side in Letterkenny, while Galway will see themselves back in the mix for league honours if they prevail on Sunday. It will be a tall order for Donegal to beat Galway but they too are depleted with the loss of their All Ireland full forward line.

Shane Walsh, Damien Comer and Rob Finnerty are a talented trio and their score-getting ability is a definite loss to Pádraic Joyce’s team. Galway teams always play an attractive and effective brand of football. Their athleticism, energy and staying power, combined with mobility and style. plus the experience gained from playing in their All-Ireland final appearance last year makes them most difficult opposition.

To take two most valuable points on Sunday, Donegal must discover a ruthless killer touch in front of goal. Galway will test Carr’s men to the limit and nothing less than a full-blooded expressive performance will be sufficient if a home victory is to be achieved in Letterkenny.

Donegal supporters in Ballybofey for the Kerry game gave the team wonderful support and played a major role in that win. More of the same would be a big help on Sunday when there is so much at stake.

Presidency
While it was disappointing to see that Killybegs’ Niall Erskine did not achieve his ambition to become the 41st President of the GAA, it was good to see that he was beaten by another Ulster man in Armagh’s Jarlath Burns. One of his priorities, he has said, is to have the courage to go ahead and build Casement Park. The Gaels of Antrim have for many years existed without a home of their own. Let us hope that the affable Armagh man achieves this objective during his tenure at the pinnacle of the Association.