Donegal’s NFL Division 1 approach is going to be a fascinating watch  

“Jim didn’t give one damn about the league” is how Ryan Bradley once summed up the Donrgal manager’s approach to anything outside of the Ulster and All-Ireland SFC races. 

Speaking back in 2022 when a McGuinness return to the Donegal helm was on absolutely no one’s radar, 2012 All-Ireland winner Bradley candidly explained that in his time wearing his county’s colours the league was to be endured rather than embraced. 

Conserving energy, retaining some stealth and getting everything aligned ahead of what was always a huge opening provincial battle was the aim, right out the gate in January. 

Speaking to this reporter at the time Bradley, coincidently, referenced a chastising 2-16 to 1-8 drubbing in Killarney back in 2012 as his prime example when explaining McGuinness’ indifferent approach to the NFL. 

Donegal were, of course, scheduled to get their league season up and running in Killarney last weekend. But that contest was postponed with the rearranged fixture now pencilled in for Saturday, February 8, back at the same venue. 

Instead, Donegal will now make their competitive bow in 2025 this coming Saturday evening as Dublin come to Ballybofey. 

Still, it’s going to be interesting to see if Bradley’s insight from way back when still holds relevance in the here and now. 

“When I played with Donegal, the league was about surviving. That was it. 

“Championship was what it was all about. Jim, and this is the honest truth, he didn’t give one damn about the league.

“I remember getting absolutely hammered in Kerry in 2012. Battered on the scoreboard and battered on the field. 

“They physically beat us – knocked lumps out of us. Paul Galvin should have been sent off three times that day, Bryan Sheehan too.

“They probably seen us as a side that laid a certain kind of a marker in 2011, and they felt they were laying down their own law that day. 

“But Jim got us back in after and, almost laughing at it, said ‘we’ll show them what we’re about come summer’. And we did. 

“We moved on quite quickly. Jim wasn’t one bit annoyed or angry. The League, for Jim, was about surviving. That was it.”

 McGuinness was probably glad of the softer launchpad in Division 2 last season when he first came back in through the door. 

It certainly allowed Donegal to go about their championship preparations on their own terms. With the benefit of hindsight, Armagh also reaped fair reward from plying their league trade in the second tier. 

The previous narrative that you needed to be in Division 1 to land the big prizes has been well and truly shattered. 

McGuinness explained at the squad’s recent NFL press launch: “Armagh last year and Dublin the year before, out of Division 2 won it. So many people thought it was impossible to win the All-Ireland playing in Division 2. But that’s turned on its head”. 

Given just how low morale was in 2023 and even with McGuinness’ profile, nothing more than a casual eye would have been initially thrown at Donegal’s league results and performances there. 

But given the heights they then scaled, and given the new playing rules that were launched last weekend, all eyes will surely be trained on McGuinness this Saturday night and his opening spin on things.

At that same official NFL press launch over a fortnight ago, McGuinness said he'd be taking no unnecessary risks with any of his players in the early rounds of the NFL. 

And while a recent hamstring nick suffered by the returning Michael Murphy has cleared up, the manager says he and a number of others will have to be slowly built back up including fellow returnees Eoin McHugh, Odhran McFadden-Ferry and Eoghan McGettigan.

“ The returning players need to be built up. We need to have them ready. Their experience is invaluable. We’re happy with the trajectory they have. You need good players and a level of experience. 

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“You’re going to need depth. Michael’s experience is massive. Michael has to get himself in the right spot. He is dangerous and carries a big presence. He’s versatile and has shown that down the years. Looking ahead, we have to remain adaptable.”

In closing, and perhaps in an unguarded moment as attending journalists began to pack up and ship out, McGuinness tailed off his final remarks in a very similar tone to that of Bradley’s opening ones… 

“We’re going to have seven brilliant games in Division 1 and we need to use those games as well as possible to get as many players in as good a position as possible for Derry. 

“It'll never change for us. There's two championships - Ulster and once that's over, it's All-Ireland.”

Endured but not embraced is right.