New football rules are going to seriously raise middle tempo - Neil Gallagher 

Neil Gallagher admits that the new Gaelic football rules are going to make life especially difficult for players around the middle third of the field. 

The 2012 All-Ireland winner with Donegal says with high lines now set to be held at both ends of the field, the respective middle eights are going to have to be even more dynamic. 

The Glenswilly native also anticipates that it’ll take some time to settle following such a seismic change in direction which will make for very interesting viewing during the early rounds of the NFL.  

The Football Review Committee’s recommendation to move from five to six substitutions didn’t get through Special Congress and Gallagher says that’s something that the GAA might have to revisit if the game, as expected, does become much faster. 

“Donegal are fortunate that they have legs right now all over the field,” said Gallagher. “Looking at the energy they were able to muster last season, it was amazing to watch at times. 

“That said, in the general sense, this looks like it’s going to push players even further in terms of fitness and the rate at which they are going to be asked to cover ground. 

“I still think we’re in a healthier position than most in that sense simply because of the energy I feel we do have. 

“The interesting one in regards to the rules and what didn’t get through, the sixth substitute was one I felt could have helped maybe take some of the pressure off in that sense. 

“I’m sure there are things Jim and his management team instantly like and don’t like in regards to this but there is no better man at trying to make the rules work in his side’s favour. He’s someone that has a serious interest in basketball and soccer. 

“He’ll see things that others won’t. So that early or initial settling in stage of the league is going to be chaotic in one sense but so, so interesting in another. 

“And it’s not about finding a way around the rules, but maximising the scope that is there. Jim sees that. 

“And the likes of Malachy O’Rourke in Tyrone and Paddy Tally in Derry, they’ll all be in that same boat. 

“But right from the off, when these rules were first aired, Jim will not have been able to help himself, he’d have been right down to business with pen and paper”. 

Meanwhile, Gallagher admits he was as surprised as anyone when clubmate and Donegal icon Michael Murphy decided to reverse his retirement decision. 

Still, the double All-Star says it just adds even more intrigue to what is already shaping up to be a fascinating 2025 season.   

“It’s even interesting to see the other lads that have come back on board. Michael will obviously grab the headlines but there is something to be said too when the likes of Eoin McHugh, Odhran McFadden Ferry and Eoghan McGettigan are also back in line. 

“That freshens it up but you’re also chatting about lads with a lot of experience at this level already.  Finnbarr Roarty is another that got a taste of this last year so he’s going to be chomping at the bit.

“As for Michael, listen, he went into great detail about the reasons he stepped away and they were all valid at the time, I’m sure. 

“But looking on last year, watching Donegal just come up short against Galway, that would have really stung. And I’ve no doubt the two-year break means he’s got a good bit of energy back. 

“Michael would have been sat in Croke Park last summer, the fine margins that were in that game, and he’d have quickly come to the conclusion that he could add something in 2025. 

“And all of our opinions are that he obviously can. Jim will be his last manager at inter-county level and that’s a relationship and a partnership that can still be really potent. It’s so exciting for everyone”.

Donegal jetted off early Sunday morning to Abu Dhabi for a warm-weather training camp as preparations for their return to Division 1 of the NFL begin in some style. 

Gallagher though has been part of similar pre-season excursions in the past and warns the uninitiated that every single second in that searing heat will be put to real use by McGuinness.  

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“It’s not a holiday, that’s one thing for sure,” Gallagher explained. “There is crucial work to get through in terms of fitness and even the analysis, which is important at the best of times, is even more crucial just for the fact that there are these rule changes. 

“The benefit of having access to all your players for that time frame is also gold. Any time we ever went away to a training camp that was the huge thing. 

“All that preparation as well as the squad and the new faces acquainting themselves and gelling in, that’s a process that will accelerate because of this camp”.