Barrett on Donegal U-17 win: 'We raised it in the second half'

Relief, sheer and total relief was the main emotion on the face of Donegal boss Luke Barrett after his gritty young men eventually overcame a very well-organized Armagh side at a sodden Healy Park.

Donegal ran out 1-6 to 0-5 winners in the Electric Ireland Ulster U-17 semi-final on an evening far-fetched from August.

“Yes sheer relief but we would not be happy with our performance overall and it is great to be in an Ulster final,” Barrett said afterwards.

For long periods, a physically powerful Armagh side were in control but hit 12 wides as Donegal struggled to stay in contention. It looked bleak when they conceded three points in two minutes on the spin in the run up to half-time. Armagh deservedly led by 0-4 to 0-2 at the break. But there were two key turning points in this mostly dogged affair.

The first was when Armagh’s impressive corner forward Cianan Keenan was lined for two yellow cards in the 36th minute.
And then in the 43rd minute in a totally bizarre decision, Armagh decided to take off one of Donegal’s biggest headaches in Aaron O’Neill.

A previously hesitant Donegal grew into the game and when team captain Luke McGlynn got a fabulous goal, it was all over.
“It is a relief that we got another opportunity,” Barrett added. “We knew coming up here tonight what was in front of us. Armagh were always going to be a very difficult opponent. They dogged it out against Derry last week and they were coming in here on a high and they set up fierce well defensively.

“We found them very difficult to break down for long periods of the game. Thankfully we just got over the line”.

The first half was a most frustrating experience for Donegal as they could not even get to the Armagh 20 metre line, such was the effective screen put up by the Orchard county.

“Maybe there was a bit of nerves in that first half, and you have to credit Armagh the way they went about their business and the way they were very well set up,” Barrett added.

“And that period where they tagged on three points just before half-time was probably overdue as they also kicked a lot of wides. And we had a great save from Aaron Cullen again”.

So, what did Barrett say to his boys at the break? He said: “We said very little at the break other than if we were going to go out of the Ulster Championship, we were not going to go out the way we played in the first half.

“We said we were going to give it everything we have and if its good enough it is good enough and if it’s not it’s not. We were not going out without a battle, and we did raise it in the second half”.

When asked if the sending off of Armagh star Cianan Campbell had a bearing on the game, Barrett said: “It probably was a turning point, but I don’t think that Brendan Hughes will use that as an excuse.

“We had a man sent off as well last week and I thought we used the extra man well and it freed up Karl Magee and he came into the game very well. I thought we were getting a bit of momentum and we built on that. And with the extra man we were winning more of the kick outs.

“They had a lot of big men around the middle, but we won a lot more ball in the final quarter. We got some great well worked scores and especially from Oisin Caulfield and Luke McGlynn’s great goal.

“We only showed it in fits and starts tonight and I don’t think we have got that performance that we have been looking for yet.
“The lads are relieved and happy tonight, but they are a bit disappointed with the performance as well”.

So, what does Donegal need to win that Ulster title?
“It is hard to say as every day is different and it depends on the opposition, and we will have to come up with a plan to win it”.
Once again it was McGlynn who got the match-winning score, a sublimely finished goal. “Yes he was superb but I thought that Oisin Caulfield was exceptional and he caused Armagh a lot of problems,” Barrett added.

“Luke is a great player, but he won’t be happy with his performance tonight either. These boys set very high standards for themselves which makes our job a lot easier.”

It is five years since Donegal were in an Ulster final and they are one step away from provincial glory.