Dubs Defeat Donegal in Pulsating Encounter

It wasn’t a championship encounter last night at Headquarters but for February fare it was as good as it gets for intensity. There was plenty of quality on show too with some fine scores on either side but ultimately it was Donegal’s profligacy and indiscipline that led to a five-point defeat.

Above the steps leading up to the Cusack Stand, there’s a huge banner featuring the great and the good of the GAA and for the last few years Bernard Brogan has been the centrepiece; now though there’s a new banner for 2015 and our own Michael Murphy is the main man. It’s a reminder of Donegal’s place in Gaelic Football right now - we’re at the top table and despite almost every pundit in the land tipping a two horse race for honours this season between Kerry and Dublin, they would be unwise to write off last year’s runners-up.

Murphy lived up to his main man billing with a wonderful display of point taking, vision, awareness and selfless work ethic. Within thirty seconds of both the first half and second half starting, he split the posts – the first a beautiful effort off his less favoured left side.

The usual debate was raised during the week about where Michael should be stationed after he played around midfield for the opening half in Ballybofey; he spent the majority of last night inside at full forward but if he sees a run to be tracked or a tackle to be made he doesn’t wait for someone else to do the job, he does it himself. During the first half, Christy Toye was down injured in front of the Hill goal having taken a hefty bang; as he lay prone on the ground, he was out of position as Dublin counter attacked up the field. His captain didn’t need anyone to tell him what was needed - immediately Murphy sprinted seventy yards back to midfield to take his team mate’s place.

That’s captaincy, that’s leadership and that’s why he is the country’s best player.

The full forward versus deeper argument in itself gives Rory Gallagher a trump card in that opposition teams have to have two plans to combat Murphy. If he’s left on the edge of the square all the time, he will invariably be double teamed and while that might leave space for others, the others aren’t Michael Murphy.

When Jack McCaffrey burst through to score the match winning goal with a stunning finish, it was Michael who was beside him trying to get a tackle in; in truth that was when he should have taken a black card for the team and stopped McCaffrey in his tracks. He lasted about another five minutes before the inevitable card came; Michael had played close to the edge throughout the game and it was no surprise that he didn’t make it to the final whistle.

All over the field there were fierce battles being fought and the sheer spite and dislike the two teams have for one another was very evident. There were late hits, dirty strokes and huge physicality from both sides and referee Maurice Deegan seemed to lose control in the last quarter.

There weren’t too many changes from the joust with Derry last week; Eamonn Doherty came in from the start and had a solid enough outing while Karl Lacey was re-directed to wing forward. The imperious Four Masters man saw plenty of ball and looks to be in tip-top shape which is a huge plus and aside from a few mis-cues with the boot he performed well and was a constant thorn in Dublin’s side. Martin O’Reilly played a deeper role this week, reverting back to his more customary half forward spot; he put in another good shift and, along with midfielder Hugh McFadden, has forced his way into the manager’s thinking for when the bigger challenges come around.

Paul Durcan’s woes continued with a loose kick out leading to the opening goal for the Dubs; a clatter from Karl Lacey in then trying to prevent the goal-bound shot from Cormac Costello led to a knock on the head and Michael Boyle coming in to replace him. The Termon net-minder did well for the most part on his kick-outs; one late effort that didn’t clear the twenty-one yard line led to a throw ball, as well as a bollocking from Mark McHugh. Mark and younger brother Ryan were excellent, both constantly offered themselves as ball carriers and gave support to others; they seemed to be well fired up for the game and carried the fight to Dublin, never taking a backward step.

The kick out strategy was interesting with Donegal again, as they did last week, trying to cut out the short variety as much as possible. Dublin on the other hand refused to go long as Donegal made sure the wings were covered and hence cut off their usual wide receivers.

McFadden came on a lot from last week’s encounter and was a much greater presence around the middle third. He got through plenty of ball last week but this time around he got more involved in tackling and breaking and indeed came in for quite amount of attention from blue jerseys as they set upon some new blood. McFadden handled it well and can be delighted with his night’s work. It was the Killybegs man’s withdrawal, with his namesake Colm joining the action, that actually led to Donegal’s downfall.

After Kevin McManamon got a second yellow card, which in truth could have been a red following a forearm smash on the elder McHugh, the manager decided to go for broke somewhat. With an extra man, his deep lying midfielder was replaced by a forward in the hope that more scores would follow. In response Jim Gavin brought on fresh legs, McCaffrey amongst them, to run at the newly exposed rearguard. The goal put paid to any chance of salvaging league points from this encounter and just like the battle last August, the team that got the goals, got the win.

Up until then Dublin remained in front largely due to the free taking of Dean Rock; time and again a lazy Donegal hand went into a tackle and conceded a free and worse was the number of times the referee brought the ball forward into score able positions following too much chat from the visitors. Granted, Deegan’s decision making was frustrating both sides but at the highest level discipline is a vital component in winning games and the players should know better. The hosts went almost half an hour without scoring from play and yet were never behind – that statistic tells its own story.

Overall, Rory and his management team will be fairly satisfied with the opening fortnight of league action. What was clear from last night is that the teams do not like each other very much and that Donegal have got inside Dublin’s heads. The Dubs are still shocked that they were so roundly beaten in that last four contest and it is eating away at them. The stall they set out with last night was entirely a reaction to that game.  John Small sat in the centre back pocket and tried to block the middle channel. They crowded the middle third. They daren’t kick long from restarts. They’re spooked.

Donegal kicked numerous bad wides into the Canal End goal in the second half but when Dublin were shooting that way in the opening period they constantly snatched at chances, rushed their kicks for fear of a gold jersey closing them down. In the semi-final they needed a series of wonder points from Diarmuid Connolly and Paul Flynn to get ahead but last night they had many simpler opportunities yet were anxious and took bad decisions when they could have worked the ball into better positions.

So as we head into a short break in league action, it is tempting to peek ahead to the Summer; if these two giants cross swords again there won’t be a bookmaker on the planet who’d be offering 8/1 on a Donegal win. We know that we’re one of the main players, the bookies know it and most importantly – Dublin know it.

Rory Roars His Charges to Opening League Win

So here we go again - after the shadow boxing of the McKenna Cup, the football fare moved up a notch this weekend with competitive action getting underway beneath the lights of MacCumhaill Park. A local derby led to a bumper crowd coming through the turnstiles and the cracking atmosphere made for a fantastic’s night entertainment.

It'’s certainly a great boost getting off to a winning start and Rory Gallagher will be fairly pleased with how his new charges performed. Donegal’s recent Division One campaigns have been stop-start by their nature, culminating in two final day shoot outs – one going our way in 2012, the other resulting in relegation from the top tier the following year. A more consistent run this time around with no demotion threat would be on the new manager's wishlist.

There was a feeling of new era about last night with Rory donning his florescent Bainisiteoir bib although we were all transported into the past and back to last September after only a few minutes with Paul Durcan’s very first kick-out going straight to the opposition full forward. Thankfully there was no resulting goal but the collective intake of breath around the ground was one we could have done without. Durcan tried another short kick to Mark McHugh and both Rory and his assistant Jack Cooney went onto the field to speak to the big Four Masters netminder – we’re going long.

Gallagher could be heard shouting ‘tight field’ to his wing backs and wing forwards as Durcan stood over his restarts; the idea being that they are to stay narrow and leave space on the wings before making what they will hope will be an unopposed run towards the ball.

That wasn’t the only shout coming from the Donegal touchline and anyone who hadn’t seen the Belleek native’s management style in action up until now were given the full treatment last night. He is constantly onto his players, both encouraging and chastising but always wanting more. Gallagher has a presence about him on the sideline and appears to be totally focused on whats in front of him and very confident in his own abilities – a fascinating character to observe.

Donegal’s performance initially was patchy to say the least, looking sluggish and lethargic in the second quarter. Whether there was a method to the madness it’s hard to know but Donegal were setup very conservatively in the first half and didn’t run at the Oakleaf defence too often. Patrick McBrearty was the lone attacker with Michael Murphy stationed at midfield. Hugh McFadden was a late change to the named line-up and he was perched between the full back line and midfield and carried a huge amount of ball in the opening period. A comfortable footballer with plenty of ability, the Kilybegs man doesn’t yet have the raw power in his legs and with Odhran MacNiallais struggling somewhat to get into the game in the first half, Donegal were stuck in second gear for spells.

Derry on the other hand ran incessantly at their opponents’ rearguard and got plenty of joy in taking scores and drawing frees, with Mark Lynch punishing any misdemeanours. The visitors were deservedly in front at the change of ends and it was going to need a response from Donegal after the break to turn around a three-point deficit.

The response duly came and the catalyst was Martin McElhinney; on his introduction he reduced the deficit almost immediately with a well taken point but it was his overall directness and the injection of pace he provided, in contrast to McFadden’s calm and languid style that turned the tide his team’s way. His Creeslough colleague in midfield, Christy Toye, came into the game much more and with MacNiallais and Neil Gallagher getting through trojan work around the middle, Donegal moved through the gears.

Perhaps, similarly to last year’s championship, that will be the template; get parity or close to it around the middle sector to begin with before unleashing fresh runners in the second half and consequently redeploying Murphy to the edge of the square. Derry’s first half performance helped the script as they put so much effort in they appeared to have little left in the tank for the final quarter.

With Derry on the rack and Donegal hitting the front, a goal would have ended the contest; the opportunity arrived with Murphy being tugged back by Niall Holly in the box. We were again brought back to a past All Ireland disappointment as Michael’s kick thundered off the crossbar, just like in Breffni Park almost five years ago. He followed that misfortune up with another a minute later, as an attempt at a point came back off the upright and you started to wonder if it was going to be one of those nights. The penalty was soft to a certain extent so maybe it was poetic justice although any logical thinking regards referring decisions has to be tempered with the fact that the man in the middle was our old friend from Sligo, Mr Marty Duffy.

It was time for MacNiallais to put his mark on proceedings and when he was put in the clear by Toye he fired the ball low into the net, a strike that had a fair bit of frustration behind it. That made up for the spot kick miss and from then on Donegal hit for home. Despite an opening or two for Brian McIver’s side, they were unable to get within striking distance and scores from Martin Reilly and McBrearty put a seal on a hugely impressive second half display.

McBrearty took home the man of the match award from Setanta television and it could, indeed should, be the start of a big year for the Kilcar man. Having been a teenage prodigy for so long, the time has come for Patrick to become one of Donegal’s main men. He has all the ability and while he is already a highly rated inter-county performer, he can get to another level. Some of his finishing last night was out of the top drawer while his ball-winning was excellent.

The fine scores from distance that McBrearty, Reilly and Toye registered showed that Donegal are well able to score from distance but it is still a source of frustration for many that the team remains a bit shot-shy at times and this has been the case for a number of years. We’re used to seeing patient build-up with an emphasis on waiting for the right opportunity but at times last night players just had a go when they found a yard of space and the results was some wonderful point taking – let’s hope we see more of that.

Whenever a new manager comes in, those players that were previously on the fringes often stake a claim for a more central role. Martin Reilly is a case in point and he did his chances no harm with an excellent shift of work last night and capped his display with two points from play. Reilly and late substitute Darach O’Connor are fast, nippy alternatives in the full forward line compared to the brute ball-winning power of McBrearty, Murphy and Colm McFadden; it will be interesting to see how Rory assimilates his forward line over the coming league games.

Next up its The Dubs and a first return to Headquarters since that day of devastation in September. Our last meeting with the cosmopolitans of course brings to mind much more joyous memories and despite a defeat to Cork today, expect a tough battle this coming Saturday night. Dublin will surely include some more of their front line players than what took the field at Pairc Ui Rinn this afternoon and it has all the makings of another exciting encounter.

Dún na nGall Into All-Ireland Final After Beating the Unbeatables

They said that they were the team that couldn’t be beaten. We were the team that beat the team that couldn’t be beaten.

Those were the immortal words uttered by Pete McGrath as he addressed thousands of Down supporters in Newry after he had masterminded his team to the 1991 All-Ireland title, against the supposedly unbeatable Meath. Those words seem very apt this morning.

Twenty-three years on, Jim McGuinness is the master and his Donegal side have beaten the team that couldn’t be beaten.

Things were looking ominous early on as a Paul Flynn inspired Dublin looked like they were going to run riot and they raced ahead with a series of excellent points. They never managed to raise a green flag though and that was vital for Donegal to stay in the game. Paul Durcan made a wonderful save from Diarmuid Connolly and that, allied with the introduction of Christy Toye, swung the pendulum towards the green and gold. Toye’s tackle and dispossession on Michael Dara Macauley in the first half was a big moment and got the Donegal support off their seats and got the adrenalin going.

The training camp in Enfield last week had many speculating that a new tactical grand plan would be unveiled by McGuinness yet Donegal stuck to what they’ve always done but crucially produced their best ever display under his stewardship. There were slight variations here and there but ‘The System’ is still alive and well and when executed to perfection it is unbeatable.

One key tactical variation was the positioning and interchanging of the Glenswilly duo, Michael Murphy and Neil Gallagher. This Dublin team hadn’t been tested all year and it was well documented that they had a suspect full back line but no team had been able to really get at it. This game was billed as Donegal’s defence stopping Dublin’s attack – but McGuinness knew how to turn the tables and attack the Dublin rear guard.

He knew if they could create space in behind and get runners in there, there was joy to be had. Murphy was being picked up by Rory O’Carroll while Michael Dara Macauley shadowed big Neil. With the two players constantly changing it meant that O’Carroll often found himself at midfield with Macauley marooned at full back – two players out of position and in unknown territory. It caused confusion in the Dublin defence, generated space and with three goals to show it proved to be a marvellous ploy by Jim.

Murphy actually spent more time at full forward yesterday than he has done all year but he still managed his customary tour de force all action display, he was simply everywhere. He nailed a forty yard score when the first half comeback was in full swing just minutes after he had missed a gimmie. His role in the opening goal was crucial - after the first ball didn’t go his way he put in a hit on Michael Fitzsimons with the ball popping up to Colm McFadden who fed Ryan McHugh to finish.

It is these types of situations and these types of plays that mark Murphy apart; he can be the typical full forward kicking scores and plundering goals but he can also play any number of roles and make chances out of nothing. The tackle on Fitzsimons was reminiscent of his hit on Conor Gormley in the Ulster semi-final of 2011, which led to a McFadden goal and a Donegal victory. Murphy has now firmly put himself in the frame for the player of the year award - more importantly he will have a chance in three weeks’ time of climbing those famous Hogan Stand steps again.

McHugh’s goal capped an amazing few minutes of football from Donegal, scoring an unanswered 1-4 having been five points in arrears. The Dubs were stunned and once Donegal hit the front they never looked back. The Kilcar man was in the right place at the right time again shortly into the second half to finish wonderfully with his hands after Anthony Thompson’s raid down the right wing.

Gallagher at midfield was a colossus again yesterday and should collect his second All Star come seasons’ end. Despite coming up against the athleticism of the Dublin midfield, he played his own game, at his own pace and bossed the middle sector – as he did against Cork in the semi-final two years ago.

There were towering performances all over the field from Donegal men with many players producing their best when it mattered most. Paddy McGrath was absolutely immense from start to finish, throwing himself into tackles and putting his body on the line. In truth, it’s hard to remember McGrath ever having a bad game for Donegal, going all the way back to the U21 campaign of 2010. Despite the success this team has enjoyed, players like McGrath and Thompson are under-rated by many yet winning teams simply don’t function without players with their selflessness and drive.

Karl Lacey went about his business quietly but efficiently yesterday, shutting out the playmaking abilities of Alan Brogan, while the McGee brothers continued the fine form they’ve shown all year. Paddy McBrearty again made a huge contribution off the bench and it will be interesting to see how he is used in the final.

It was a day of smiles all round but possibly the biggest grin we saw was that of Colm McFadden after he scored his side’s third goal. He had come into sharp focus in the previews for the game and while his shooting was still quite erratic at times he finished with 1-3 and his effort, work rate and commitment cannot be questioned. For a man playing below his usual standards he has now scored 1-10 over the course of three big championship games against Monaghan, Armagh and Dublin.

That third goal put eight points between the teams and Dublin would only get as close as six come the final whistle; Donegal’s game management and cuteness showed in the final straight as they closed the game out. In the last quarter, almost every time Dublin scored a point, there was a Donegal player down looking for attention from the physio and it killed any momentum that the Dubs might have gotten.

The role of the Donegal minors in proceedings yesterday cannot be over stated. They were underdogs in their joust with Dublin and even after conceding a needless goal, they showed great heart to get back into the game and get ahead at the finish. As people milled around the bowels of Croke Park between the minor and senior games, you could sense that every Donegal person was walking that little bit taller and it gave huge impetus for what lay ahead for the big one. To have both teams now in action on All-Ireland Final day is the stuff of dreams.

There’s a special feeling about winning a semi-final; Donegal had such a wretched record in last four encounters for so long, winning them and realising that your going to be there on the biggest day is hugely satisfying.

If there is a downside to what was one of the great days for Donegal football, it was that there was no cup handed out yesterday. It was an incredible display but it will be worth nothing unless the job is completed in three weeks against the Kingdom. The two epic battles with Mayo will have Kerry well primed for an assault on Donegal and despite supposedly being a team in transition, they will present a massive challenge. The crux of Jim’s game plan will revolve around containing Kieran Donaghy and Murphy’s rival for the player of the year award, James O’Donoghue.

Yesterday was The Messiah’s finest hour as a coach and he can take his place with the all-time greats with a second All-Ireland later this month. Believe!

Dún na nGall Too Good for Wee County

After only securing one point from the last four on offer, Donegal got back on the promotion track today with a relatively straight forward win - but they did make life hard for themselves in the second half in Ballyshannon.

Having started the two previous games against Meath and Down sluggishly, today Jim McGuinness’ men were quick out of the traps and made a blistering start, out-scoring their opponents by 0-6 to 0-1 early on and this was pushed out  as far as 0-12 to 0-1.

Louth were only out on the field a couple of minutes before throw-in and they were extremely slow to settle once the ball was thrown in. In their pre-match warm up half an hour earlier, it was strange seeing them play small-sided games with kids-sized footballs – Donegal at the other end of the field stuck to the size fives and it showed in the first quarter with fine scores taken from Dermot Molloy and Declan Walsh amongst others.

Molloy only just passed a fitness test moments before throw-in, having tweaked ligaments in his ankle in the game in Newry. Neil Gallagher didn’t make the Donegal starting line-up – he picked up a muscle strain in action for Glenswilly last weekend – although Louth had their own version playing in goal; he was a busy man with kick-outs as the home side swarmed forward at every opportunity, determined to post a big score.

Jim had been annoyed with his troops’ lack of economy in front of the posts in their last match and with two shooting drills finding their way into the warm-up routine, it was clear that they meant business in this facet of their play. Today his side managed more points in the first half (0-13) than they had managed in the entirety of either of the last two games.

With Martin McElhinney unable to start and Gallagher not fit to come in as a direct swap, it was left to Christy Toye to line up alongside Rory Kavanagh in the engine room. Both players put in excellent displays with Kavanagh the best man on show. His fielding, surging runs forward and finishing ability make him such a good all-rounder and we saw a vintage performance today from the Eunan’s man.

It is a huge credit to Toye that he has the fitness and conditioning to be able to undertake a midfield role having been on the sidelines for so long; he, just like his sidekick Kavanagh, registered a brace of points in the opening period.

Aside from the absence of the emigrated Ryan Bradley, few would have thought there would be much change to the Donegal championhsip starting fifteen from last year to this. As we near the end of the league though Toye, Ryan McHugh and Odhran MacNiallais would appear to have secured their starting jerseys for the Celtic Park showdown and that turnover of players is crucial for the panel this year.

McHugh came on for the second half of the game while his U-21 captain, Patrick McBrearty, started in attack; both men will be vital to Donegal’s attempt to get back into another provincial final on Wednesday night.

Back to today and the visitors simply had no answer to Donegal’s running game in the early stages and had only a single point to show for almost the entire first half. They picked up two black cards in their attempts to stop the Donegal waves of attack and only a late goal put some semblance of respectability on the half-time scoreboard. It was a crazy decision to let the goal stand though, with Paul Durcan being clattered as he rose to claim a high ball into his square and the Four Masters man should have been given a free out.

The next phase of the game will not have pleased neither supporters nor management. Donegal seemed to canter through the third quarter and over elaborated in attack, not taking scores when they were on. The Wee County made them pay for this with two quick fire goals and an earlier free - suddenly the gap had gone from ten points to just three. This awoke the hosts from their slumber though and they replied with a major of their own – a thunderous finish to the roof of the net from substitute David Walsh after neat link up play to fashion the chance. It was a sign of the annoyance running through the team at their own sloppiness in the preceding period as any one of Molloy, the younger McHugh or Colm McFadden could have popped the ball over for a point but it was a goal they wanted.

Louth kept plugging away and the movement and sharpness of their full forward line was causing problems for Donegal’s last line. The absence of old fashioned markers like Paddy McGrath, Frank McGlynn and Karl Lacey, who was taken off at half time, exposes this full-back line. Regardless of defensive templates and blanket systems, teams still need to have a few specialist defenders who can mark their man and be out in front of the ball; Neil McGee apart that was lacking at times today.

Overall though the objective was to get two more points and that is exactly what Donegal did -  themselves and Monaghan are out in front of the chasing pack so a draw next week in the Athletic Grounds will secure promotion and a league final place but depending on other results they may well have done enough already. An additional league outing, on the best sod in the country on Jones Road, would be welcome as it would help in getting the likes of Neil Gallagher and Paddy McGrath closer to full fitness ahead of the Derry game. That is why Donegal won’t want to rely on other results to secure their passage so it’ll be full tilt for a win next Sunday against Armagh.

Point Gained for Dún na nGall after Joust with Royals

A second half revival inspired by Christy Toye earned Donegal a hard fought point in Ballybofey today and keeps the team out in front in the promotion race. After three relatively straight forward victories thus far, Jim McGuinness’ men were given a real test today and his side will be much the better for it heading into the final trio of games.

Meath manager Mick O’Dowd and his sidekick Trevor Giles deserve huge credit for the way they took the game to Donegal; the duo had clearly done their homework in the lead up to the game and the packed house at MacCumhaill Park were treated to a fascinating tactical battle. They looked at the well known aspects of the McGuinness system and figured how they could use it to their own benefit - the role of Mark McHugh is crucial to how Donegal play and immediately from the throw in Meath set about exploiting the space he vacates while on sweeper duties.

After some positional re-alignment, O’Dowd stationed Andrew Tormey as their free man, i.e. the man who McHugh would pick up in an orthodox line-up, and he saw plenty of ball in the opening quarter playing between half-back and midfield. Tormey was free for kickouts, picked up several breaks off his midfielders, Shane O’Rourke and Bryan Menton, and registered 0-2 in the first quarter. Cork tried a similar tactic in the All-Ireland semi-final of 2012 in an attempt to stifle McHugh’s influence when they played with five defenders and seven forwards - like today it worked for the early part of the game but on that occasion as we all know, once Donegal found their feet they had the measure of the Rebels; it wasn't quite as straight forward this afternoon.

On account of Meath effectively having an extra body at midfield, Paul Durcan struggled to find his players from his restarts and O'Dowd's men quickly ran up a healthy lead. When Durcan lined up his kick-outs in the first half what he saw was a mass of bodies directly in front him with Meath having pushed up on Donegal’s defence. This left a large section of space between the 45s and it was Meath who dominated here through their sheer size around the middle third - it wasn’t until Neil Gallagher was introduced that Donegal looked comfortable in that sector.

Meath have struggled over the past few weeks in the league but what we saw today wasn’t anything new - they demolished Dublin’s lauded kick-out strategy in last year’s Leinster Final and if they had had the legs on the day they could have claimed the trophy. Back then it was Stephen Cluxton who found the going tough in finding his men, today it was Durcan. In their dominant spell at the start of the game they stretched their lead out to 0-6 to 0-1 at one stage but Donegal didn’t panic and slowly reined the Royals back in.

One vital trait that Jim has instilled in his players during his tenure is belief and in a situation like they found themselves in today, it was clear that the players didn’t panic and instead they managed to think their way through the first half.

To get back into the game the onus was on the defenders to attack from deep; Durcan began to find his full and half back lines for short kick-outs and with possession won it was about carrying the ball through the Royal rearguard. Both McHughs did this with great diligence and effort and soon the chances came. Leo McLoone and Anthony Thompson relentlessly motored forward from their defensive posts while Neil McGee made a burst up from full back only to see his scoring effort drift wide of the posts. Frank McGlynn was next up and while the Glenfin star didn’t hit the crispest shot he’s ever let fly off his left boot, it deceived the giant Meath goalkeeper Paddy O’Rourke enough to nestle in the corner of the net – game on.

Meath responded with their own green flag in what was becoming an absorbing contest but Donegal kept their foot on the throttle and by half time had cut the lead down to a manageable two points.

It was after the break that Toye came storming into the game. At times it seemed like a one man fight back effort from the Creeslough native – he made numerous dispossessions, won turnovers, drove through the Meath defence and capped off his performance with a couple of points to boot. With the amount of turnovers Toye and his team-mates forced there really should have been more than the one Donegal goal to show on the scoreboard.

Donegal lost some of their urgency when Ryan McHugh went off after being shown a black card – it was the correct decision by referee Padraig Hughes although a first half body-check on the elder McHugh, Mark, should have also been punished with a black card but was let go – new rules, same inconsistency.

Mark had a fine afternoon overall and it was interesting to see that while Meath’s free man, Tormey, had emptied the tank and was taken off with ten minutes to go, the energy reserves of Donegal’s equivalent were still in credit and he was able to keep going right until the end.

McGuinness gave Darach O’Connor a real confidence boost by throwing him into the fray in the closing stages today and the Buncrana teenager showed great maturity when he went for the equalising score in the dying minutes. In no more than a yard of space he could have easily tried to recycle the ball and wait to give a team mate an opportunity but instead he took the responsibility on himself and was unlucky to see his shot come back off the post. At that stage it looked as if it was Meath’s day but there was to be one last chance and Michael Murphy struck a fantastic free from close to the sideline to gain a point for his charges. Despite it being ‘only’ a league game there was a fair bit of pressure on the free given the anticipation from the crowd and its proximity to the sideline made the kick even tougher; there was no doubt though in Michael’s mind where the ball was going - he trusted his technique and caught it beautifully to send it sailing through the posts.

The real negative from the game was Donegal’s inability to win primary ball from their restarts. We’ve seen already through the course of the McKenna Cup and the League that they’ve done quite a bit of work on this aspect of their play over the winter but there’s still plenty to do. Of course it’s nowhere near as big of a problem when Neil Gallagher is on the field. The Glenswilly man and another substitute David Walsh made huge impacts off the bench today and the sooner these lads, Gallagher in particular, are fit enough to last seventy minutes the better.

Had the hosts been a bit more clinical in the closing stretch they could have probably come away with full points but the bit of a scare will do them no harm. Teams generally like to have things to work on and facets of their game to improve upon – Donegal had been so untroubled in the opening matches it seemed that everything was going perfectly so a bit of a reality check at this stage can be seen as a positive. That is how Jim will be looking at it and after last week’s result in Croke Park and todays in Killarney, Jim Gavin and Mickey Harte will be thinking the exact same. Definitely a point gained today for Donegal and looking ahead to the summer, it could be worth a lot more.