Recharged and motivated, Gerard Gilmore ready to once again run Donegal gauntlet 

Gerard Gilmore admits that the excess of Christmas quickly scratched an itch and the Setanta marksman says he couldn’t wait to roll off the couch and get back at it with Donegal. 

The likes of Gilmore and his other club colleagues had talked about taking an extended period after Setanta’s Ulster and All-Ireland club exploits but a fortnight of indulgence quickly evaporated those notions. 

County senior hurling boss Mickey McCann was prepared to give Gilmore and company a wide bearth during the Conor McGurk Cup as well as the early exchanges of the NHL. 

However, Setanta’s entire county contingent were back at it last week, on the training field, ahead of their pre-season opener against Derry in Convoy. 

In the end, Donegal dished out a 4-25 to 1-8 drubbing to the young Oak Leafers but Gilmore was content enough to shake any little bit of rust that might have been threatening to build up. 

“As soon as Setanta’s season came to an end against Thomastown I thought I’d like some time off, rest up,” he explained. “I’d this idea of a month but see after a week of Christmas and all that excess, it was just nice to get right back at it. 

“It’s not the best time to put the feet up as there was so much turkey and food around the house you could easily get too comfortable! But the week or two, it was nice just to sit back and even reflect and look back on a superb season with the boys, family and friends. 

“It was a massive achievement for the club but also, I feel, for Donegal hurling in a general sense. 

“Mickey was very good about the whole thing - he probably didn’t expect to see all of us so soon. But I always feel it’s easier to stay fit than to try to get fit. I ticked over and was back out last Tuesday night. 

“We’ve a really good panel there with the right blend of youth and experience”. 

Gilmore, who notched eight points on Saturday last, explained it was good to get going. But he expects a much stiffer test against Fermanagh on Tuesday night (venue yet to be decided). 

“It’s good to get 2024 going with competitive matches. We’d lads coming back in just this week so they’ll appreciate shaking the legs once more after Christmas. The more games the better, it definitely beats training.

“But things will ramp up from this. That was a young Derry team, an U-20 side”.  

In regards to expectations or ambitions this term, Gilmore says the aim always is to simply keep raising the bar. 

“You have to strike when the iron is hot. We are trying to make the most of what’s at our disposal right now. So we have to grab this period with both hands and look to move the thing forward all the time.

“I think a standard has definitely been set the last number of years but we want to push it as far as we can”.