Joel Bradley Walsh and MacCumhaills keen to make SFC dent

Joel Bradley Walsh believes MacCumhaills have the potential to gatecrash the SFC elite but the Donegal panellist (22) says the Twin Towns men have to back up that belief this summer.

MacCumhaills secured their stay in Division 1 last weekend with a fine 1-17 to 1-11 win over Cloughaneely - a victory that was much more convincing than the six-point scoreline might suggest.

Oisin Gallen was simply superb in that contest, kicking 11 points in what was a glistening individual performance. But in between those bouts of genius, Bradley Walsh also gave some real glimpses of his undoubted potential.

On one such occasion, he planted a ball on the ground over 60m from goal and well right of centre. It looked ambitious to say the least, self indulgent even.

But a nonchalant trot up to the ball and Walsh arched over an absolute peach of a point that had plenty to spare as it landed high on the river end net behind the goal.

Speaking after, the significance of staying in the All-County League top flight wasn’t lost on him. And he gave a very measured but assured assessment of just where this MacCumhaills squad feel they’re currently at.

“We’re just glad to close the book on the league and just look forward to championship now with our league status secured. We probably started Division 1 this season with four or five of the toughest games you could ask for.

“It kinda put us on a back foot. But we knew coming down the stretch, if we could knuckle down and with lads coming back into the fray, we could turn it around. Thankfully that’s what we’ve done.

“One of the backroom team was saying there that it’s the first time in something like 25 years that we’ve done that - stayed in the top division after going up. So that’s progress.

“We’ve a young side there and to breed through our minor winning championship side from two years ago, the learning will be better in Division 1.

“It’s been an eye opener and those first four games I mentioned, to play the top four right away was a bit of a shock to the system.

“But staying up, getting some momentum in the last few weeks I think we’ve really got to grips with it”.

MacCumhaills will open their Donegal SFC with an away trek to traditional big guns Gaoth Dobhair before welcoming Killybegs to Ballybofey immediately after.

Of course they’ll be targeting that home game against the Fishermen but on last Sunday’s evidence they are also more than capable of going to Magheragallon and getting a result.

“Championship football, you don’t expect to get anything easy. Magheragallon away, it doesn’t really get much tougher than that. We then host Killybegs at home. They’re two sides we know well.

“We ran Gaoth Dobhair very close in 2020 down there, we took them to extra-time. We lost by a point in the end. But I think we’re improving now to the point where we have to feel we’re good enough to put it up to anyone.

“You look at that so-called top four thing and even with Glenswilly going really well, perhaps a top five now. You look at that as the barometer and wonder maybe how you crack that or get closer to it. That’s the aim I’m sure for us.

“We’ve a really good squad and even with the subs or finishers we’ve coming on, it’s a really competitive group. So it’s up to us now to go and see how we stack up in championship because it really is a completely different ball game to league”.