McShea's Say: Sparks are going to fly between Naomh Conaill and St Eunan's

The quarter-finals of the Donegal SFC delivered some excellent football, and a degree of depressing stuff also in a weekend that provided some interesting results. 

MacCumhaills defeating Glenswilly could be termed a surprise to some degree, but the other three games saw champions Naomh Conaill beat Kilcar by ten points. 

And while the result was not a major surprise, the margin of victory there certainly was. It’s quite some time since Kilcar were last on the wrong side of such a margin in championship football. 

Ardara showed their battling qualities in putting it up to Gaoth Dobhair but, in the end, the Magheragallon men had seven points to spare. 

And while they are minus some seriously talented players this term, Gaoth Dobhair’s tradition and pedigree will mean they now believe that they are genuine championship contenders. 

And having avoided the so-called ‘Big Two’, both Gaoth Dobhair and MacCumhaills will be gunning for a final spot. 

I was in Convoy for the game between St. Eunan’s and Aodh Ruadh and once again it clearly demonstrated that the most revolutionary development in modern Gaelic Football is in the art of defending. 

Teams defend in numbers and defenders are now real athletes. The balance of football power has shifted in favour of the negative. I don’t believe that history will ever prove that this change was fundamental or irrevocable. 

In Convoy on Saturday night the half-time score was Aodh Ruadh 1-2, St. Eunan’s 0-2.To say that this first-half made for dismal viewing would be an understatement.

Eunan’s, who have many talented attacking players in their ranks were simply abysmal. Their first-half display was a mirror image of their showing in last year’s county final when Glenties put them to the sword. 

To their credit, they were a different side after the interval when the introduction of Niall O’Donnell helped them play to their potential. 

And they were in no way flattered by their four-point winning margin as Aodh Ruadh scored their two goals in the first and last minutes of the match. 

At championship time, I always look for players who may have the potential to play at the top level. When Eunan’s were in trouble in the first-half on Saturday the one player who performed with real distinction was young Peter McEniff. 

From throw-in, Peter played with flair, sureness of instinct, a clarity of vision and exceptional imagination. 

And having watched him for some time his courage is never in doubt, while his long incisive passes were delivered to devastating effect. 

He is brave and elusive, and he knows where the posts are. He must be a real contender for a place in Jim McGuinness’ squad when the inter-county season returns in the new year. 

For the Ballyshannon men, this was a disappointing conclusion to what was a good season. They have shown considerable improvement this year, with a good league campaign also behind them.

But if they are to improve on their championship record, they need to uncover one or two marquee forwards because their Achilles’ heel this season has been their struggle to get scores.

Their ultra-defensive approach is more about dealing with the opposition than playing with the self-belief required to deliver at the top level. I did not get to see what was the game of the weekend between MacCumhaills and Glenswilly. 

This, by all accounts, was an epic battle. And those fortunate to be in attendance were treated to class football by our two brightest stars. 

Michael Murphy hit 1-5 for Glenswilly, and our greatest ever footballer shared the pitch on Saturday with another class act in Oisin Gallen. 

Oisin has looked the part since I first saw him play. Even in a struggling Donegal side last term, he still showed real consistency. 

He is an inspiration and capable of lifting those around him. He takes half chances with alarming consistency. When Oisin is on the pitch no game is quiet, and no cause is lost. 

And no crowd will ever be less than enthralled with the wonderful talent of the young MacCumhaills player.

The semi-finals this weekend have thrown up a repeat of last year’s final with Naomh Conaill up against fierce foes St Eunan’s. 

The Letterkenny side will still feel raw about last year’s final defeat and the circumstances that led to Shane O’Donnell’s dismissal. So there is a real edge to this one. Their meeting in Glenties in the group stage was also a real war.  

Eunan’s showed their potential and class in the second half against Aodh Ruadh but a repeat of that first-half display will mean Martin Regan’s side again progress to the final. 

Glenties teams have always had a core group of players who put their body on the line for that blue jersey. People like Leo McLoone senior, Terence Craig, Frankie Campbell and Daniel McGeehan did their club proud in long and distinguished careers long before winning championships became a way of life for the team from the Tidy Town. 

This is a very difficult game to call. If Niall O’Donnell shows the excellent form that he displayed last week, Eunan’s will be difficult to stop. 

But I would not rule out a draw between two fine sides, in what has the potential to be a very good game. The second game is, I believe, equally balanced. 

No doubt Gaoth Dobhair will spend much time this week trying to sort out the Gallen factor.

But MacCumhaills have a great mix of youth and experience in their side and if the weather conditions are reasonable, the Twin Towns men might make it to their first final since 2004.

All-Stars 

Both Oisin Gallen and Brendan McCole are very deserving of their All-Star nominations after what was a very difficult year for Donegal football. 

Both players excelled every time they pulled on their county jersey. While it is very difficult to receive an award if your county does not compete in the latter stages of the  All-Ireland, a nomination is an endorsement that the recipient was one of the best players in the game this year and both players comfortably into those criteria.