Donegal’s athletics potential still relatively untapped - Patsy McGonagle 

Patsy McGonagle says there is still so much scope for growth when it comes to Donegal athletics and how high the bar can still rise. 

McGonagle, a former Irish Athletics Team manager with four Olympic Games under his belt, was speaking at Finn Valley AC on Saturday as the club welcomed home Mark English from Paris. 

Pressed on the achievements of the likes of English, Kelly McGory and even Rachel Darragh (badminton) and Sligo’s Mona McSharry, who originally swam with Ballyshannon Marlins, McGonagle agreed it had been a brilliant number of weeks for athletes in the north west. 

However, he explained that the room for improvement is still vaster than it should be.

“Of course we can improve - we can always do better,” he said. “But there are still areas of the county where we need to start tapping into their potential”.

McGonagle - whose father Patsy Snr. hailed from Balyliffin - says the likes of the peninsula and south west Donegal, in particular, are sporting hotbeds in the general sense and athletics needs to be taking a bigger slice of the action in both regions.  

“Take Inishowen for example, it’s probably controversial to say it but there is no real underage athletics in Inishowen. It’s a huge area. 

Even going down into the south west of Donegal there are areas and pockets there too. But primary schools is where you need to begin that engagement. 

“And that’s not necessarily the schools’ fault. It’s a facilities issue where schools simply don’t have the required space. 

“And there’s big competition out there for young people’s attention. I have a progamme where we send coaches out into the schools but the GAA and Finn Harps have the same thing. 

“Even if there is no one in the community prepared to lead it out, schools participation at least gives kids a shot at it and, if the talent is there, you’ll see it. 

“So many people got the bug for it by becoming involved in primary schools athletics and a lot of those same people went on to excel at other sports”.

With the Olympics and the likes of the aforementioned athletes giving their respective sports spotlight, McGonagle is asked if it’s a case of striking while the iron is hot? 

“There is a bounce during the Olympics but listen, it’s fleeting and it disappears really quickly as something else always comes along. 

“In another week or two the conversation from the Olympics will have moved on. It has to be about structure and consistency in how that’s laid out”.