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Donegal GAA thread

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There are a number of positives that I took from the Derry game.
1. Tactically Aidan O'Rourke and Paddy Bradley generally got it right, I thought our structure was good, our attacking movement was excellent and has dramatically improved, albeit a few times we had nobody inside.
2. The leaders stepped up, as they did in the previous game against Clare.
3. Our fitness and conditioning rivalled Derry, which considering our concerns earlier this season, shows a big improvement in a short space of time.

We still have a few weak links in the team, either due to inexperience or lack of pace, but I can't question their heart. It was an impressive performance by Donegal, I'm very proud of the players and the management team as a couple of months ago I was dreading this group.

I agree with what other poster mentioned about missing players, I think if we could launch Michael Murphy, Michael Langan, Ryan McHugh, Peadar Mogan and Odhran MacNiallais from the bench, imagine the impact, not to mention many other quality players who have opted out this year for whatever reason.

Commodore (Donegal) - Posts: 1215 - 06/06/2023 09:53:23    2484284

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Can't fault the players huge effort put in. But the Achilles heel is our defence which I have been saying this long while. We don't have the Karl Lacey's the Mc gee type players in the county at moment nor will we for the next few years. I know the attacking Derry defenders caused us huge problems but we don't have good enough man to man defenders..

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2571 - 06/06/2023 11:22:36    2484334

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I thought the lads acquitted themselves very well on Sunday in what undoubtedly were very testing conditions. Derry's superior fitness and squad depth showed in the end, and if they had been more ruthless/clinical, the scoreline could have been worse. That would have been harsh on our lads however because they put in a good shift & showed some good quality throughout.

Patton's kickouts were awesome in general. A couple of iffy ones but overall his range and accuracy were outstanding. Good to see him clip over a 45 as well, casual as you like.

Gallen confirmed what we in Donegal all knew already. This boy can play. If he can just stay injury free now will be the hope. It's a long time since Chrissy McKaigue got a roasting like that.

Whatever way the rest of this campaign ends, I'm a little bit more optimistic than I was. If we can get those players back for 2024, and perhaps more importantly, address the background issues which caused so much harm, then we're still certainly capable of competing at the top level. Absolutely vital though that we start 2024 well and try to build some positive momentum. If things are still in disarray, and players opt out again, then it will be a struggle.

Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9530 - 06/06/2023 11:31:48    2484338

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Replying To highdropingball:  "Good performance today we should keep O Rourke and Bradley in charge for next 2 seasons definte improvement"
Huge improvement from what? The O'Rourke and Bradley-coached team that slept-walked through the league? When it mattered, Donegal have been terrible this year. Sunday's match was a challenge match.

There's no way that O'Rourke and Bradley should be kept on past this year's championship. I mean this, even if Donegal make it to Quarters or a Semi final, they should not be kept on on principle due to the circumstances surrounding how they were hired in the first place.

SurelyToGod (Donegal) - Posts: 443 - 06/06/2023 13:22:05    2484400

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Replying To rorysboys:  "Can't fault the players huge effort put in. But the Achilles heel is our defence which I have been saying this long while. We don't have the Karl Lacey's the Mc gee type players in the county at moment nor will we for the next few years. I know the attacking Derry defenders caused us huge problems but we don't have good enough man to man defenders.."
I don't fully agree regarding our defense, Derry's 3 goals came from runners coming from deep, I don't think our man marking defenders could do much, our outfield players in each case had lost these runners and left us vulerable.

Conceded 2-13 vs Down, scored 1-11
Conceded 0-09 vs Clare, scored 0-14
Conceded 3-14 vs Derry, scored 1-15

Looking at our Championship so far, our point scoring is steadily increasing, if we could cut out the conceding goals we would be a solid side.

Commodore (Donegal) - Posts: 1215 - 06/06/2023 13:43:01    2484407

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Watched the Gaeltacht final yesterday. Only difference between the two teams was that Tones played their FF in his proper position and Glenties played theirs inside their own 45. Mcagettigan is lethal if utilised properly.

peiledoir20 (Donegal) - Posts: 1070 - 06/06/2023 13:46:42    2484409

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Replying To Lockjaw:  "I thought the lads acquitted themselves very well on Sunday in what undoubtedly were very testing conditions. Derry's superior fitness and squad depth showed in the end, and if they had been more ruthless/clinical, the scoreline could have been worse. That would have been harsh on our lads however because they put in a good shift & showed some good quality throughout.

Patton's kickouts were awesome in general. A couple of iffy ones but overall his range and accuracy were outstanding. Good to see him clip over a 45 as well, casual as you like.

Gallen confirmed what we in Donegal all knew already. This boy can play. If he can just stay injury free now will be the hope. It's a long time since Chrissy McKaigue got a roasting like that.

Whatever way the rest of this campaign ends, I'm a little bit more optimistic than I was. If we can get those players back for 2024, and perhaps more importantly, address the background issues which caused so much harm, then we're still certainly capable of competing at the top level. Absolutely vital though that we start 2024 well and try to build some positive momentum. If things are still in disarray, and players opt out again, then it will be a struggle."
I agree about Oisin Gallen, we all know what he is capable of when injury free and if he turns it on, its just now a matter of keeping him fit.

For me a notable improvement this year so far has been our half back line, I think its actually come together nicely now.
Caolan McColgan is powerful, serious pace when attacking.
Eoghan Ban Gallagher at No 6 give us serious attacking.
Jack McKelvey came on as a sub against Derry, he is another serious wing back if he stays fit.

Our full back line is looking good with Brendan McCole and Stephen McMenamin, Mark Curran is inexperienced at this level, but has done well. I think Aaron Deeney, Conor Morrison and Odhran McFadden Ferry could bolster things up.

Our forward 6 is still where we are a bit light, but we are still racking up decent scores. If we could fine tune that area then we could be back at the top table.

Commodore (Donegal) - Posts: 1215 - 06/06/2023 14:11:28    2484418

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Replying To Commodore:  "I don't fully agree regarding our defense, Derry's 3 goals came from runners coming from deep, I don't think our man marking defenders could do much, our outfield players in each case had lost these runners and left us vulerable.

Conceded 2-13 vs Down, scored 1-11
Conceded 0-09 vs Clare, scored 0-14
Conceded 3-14 vs Derry, scored 1-15

Looking at our Championship so far, our point scoring is steadily increasing, if we could cut out the conceding goals we would be a solid side."
We played down and Clare no world beaters. The only good team we met scored 3 and should have got another few. So you still think we have a defence to deal with the top guns. It pains me to say it but we don't.

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2571 - 06/06/2023 15:02:54    2484438

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Replying To peiledoir20:  "Watched the Gaeltacht final yesterday. Only difference between the two teams was that Tones played their FF in his proper position and Glenties played theirs inside their own 45. Mcagettigan is lethal if utilised properly."
Agree another thing about yesterday have n Conal not a conveyor belt of young lads coming through that they have to rely on 35 year plus players. Must be demoralising for young lads. Good to see ciaran Gillespie back for gweedore but he seems way off it which would be expected after a horrible few years with injuries. TG4 must be praised for there excellent coverage.

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2571 - 06/06/2023 15:07:34    2484444

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Replying To rorysboys:  "Can't fault the players huge effort put in. But the Achilles heel is our defence which I have been saying this long while. We don't have the Karl Lacey's the Mc gee type players in the county at moment nor will we for the next few years. I know the attacking Derry defenders caused us huge problems but we don't have good enough man to man defenders.."
Agree.

TheRock2121 (Donegal) - Posts: 1194 - 06/06/2023 15:33:10    2484457

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Replying To rorysboys:  "We played down and Clare no world beaters. The only good team we met scored 3 and should have got another few. So you still think we have a defence to deal with the top guns. It pains me to say it but we don't."
The main problem is not our defence but runners from further out the field. When Derry broke forward we could not handle their pace and our defence had to deal with the extra men coming forward. Where you at the match????

Scenicparish (Donegal) - Posts: 411 - 06/06/2023 18:08:47    2484527

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Replying To peiledoir20:  "Watched the Gaeltacht final yesterday. Only difference between the two teams was that Tones played their FF in his proper position and Glenties played theirs inside their own 45. Mcagettigan is lethal if utilised properly."
Tones full forward was 6 foot 7 and is an ideal target man. Mc Gettigan is a pacy forward and a totally different type of player.

Scenicparish (Donegal) - Posts: 411 - 06/06/2023 18:13:33    2484529

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Replying To Commodore:  "I agree about Oisin Gallen, we all know what he is capable of when injury free and if he turns it on, its just now a matter of keeping him fit.

For me a notable improvement this year so far has been our half back line, I think its actually come together nicely now.
Caolan McColgan is powerful, serious pace when attacking.
Eoghan Ban Gallagher at No 6 give us serious attacking.
Jack McKelvey came on as a sub against Derry, he is another serious wing back if he stays fit.

Our full back line is looking good with Brendan McCole and Stephen McMenamin, Mark Curran is inexperienced at this level, but has done well. I think Aaron Deeney, Conor Morrison and Odhran McFadden Ferry could bolster things up.

Our forward 6 is still where we are a bit light, but we are still racking up decent scores. If we could fine tune that area then we could be back at the top table."
I'm a huge fan of Eoin Ban Gallagher, a powerful runner, but he isn't a particularly good defender, left cassidy free who at one stage was left with mcgonigle in first half whom he beat easily and scored

totalrecall (Leitrim) - Posts: 1000 - 06/06/2023 21:47:54    2484570

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The problem is not the defence. When you have the likes of McGuigan and Heron dropping deep and playing as sweepers it shows that the opposition are set-up recognising Donegal's strengths in defence. Off-the-ball, Donegal have a solid defensive structure, and their man-markers routinely dominate match-ups.

On-the-ball and in-transition is where Donegal have been brutal this year, and it's a more systematic flaw than looking to individual players or lines to blame. An entire change of plan in the half-forward line is essential for this team to produce any results at all, and I don't have any reason to believe Bradley will deliver upon that.

SurelyToGod (Donegal) - Posts: 443 - 06/06/2023 23:22:49    2484594

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Replying To Scenicparish:  "Tones full forward was 6 foot 7 and is an ideal target man. Mc Gettigan is a pacy forward and a totally different type of player."
That may be, but (with his pace as you say) would McGettigan not be better inside the opposition 45 instead of his own?

peiledoir20 (Donegal) - Posts: 1070 - 07/06/2023 08:01:18    2484612

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Replying To Commodore:  "I agree about Oisin Gallen, we all know what he is capable of when injury free and if he turns it on, its just now a matter of keeping him fit.

For me a notable improvement this year so far has been our half back line, I think its actually come together nicely now.
Caolan McColgan is powerful, serious pace when attacking.
Eoghan Ban Gallagher at No 6 give us serious attacking.
Jack McKelvey came on as a sub against Derry, he is another serious wing back if he stays fit.

Our full back line is looking good with Brendan McCole and Stephen McMenamin, Mark Curran is inexperienced at this level, but has done well. I think Aaron Deeney, Conor Morrison and Odhran McFadden Ferry could bolster things up.

Our forward 6 is still where we are a bit light, but we are still racking up decent scores. If we could fine tune that area then we could be back at the top table."
I like Eoghan Ban but if he is to play 6 we need to block the middle in another way which we didn't at the weekend. Derry broke quite freely through our middle channel repeatedly and i hazard a guess that most of there scores came from it. To me a 6's main job is to ensure that doesn't happen!

beidhmeanseo (Donegal) - Posts: 138 - 07/06/2023 08:18:00    2484616

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Replying To rorysboys:  "We played down and Clare no world beaters. The only good team we met scored 3 and should have got another few. So you still think we have a defence to deal with the top guns. It pains me to say it but we don't."
We could have had another one or two goals ourselves and we left a good few points behind us, we could have won that game just as easily as Derry.

As I said, our man markers weren't to blame for us conceding goals, it wasn't out back six, it was our midfield and attacking six who were supposed to be tracking Derry half backs. Watch the match again closely, watch were the free Derry runner is coming from, in each case it was a runner from deep who lost his tracker. Now in one case Jason McGee dropped with cramp/injury, so those are things that can't be helped.

But overall I have been more impressed with our defending in the last 2 games, lots more physicality compared to earlier this year and while there is inexperience in our defence, I actually see things in a more positive light.
Great work by Aidan O'Rourke and Paddy Bradley.

Commodore (Donegal) - Posts: 1215 - 07/06/2023 09:35:50    2484636

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Replying To SurelyToGod:  "The problem is not the defence. When you have the likes of McGuigan and Heron dropping deep and playing as sweepers it shows that the opposition are set-up recognising Donegal's strengths in defence. Off-the-ball, Donegal have a solid defensive structure, and their man-markers routinely dominate match-ups.

On-the-ball and in-transition is where Donegal have been brutal this year, and it's a more systematic flaw than looking to individual players or lines to blame. An entire change of plan in the half-forward line is essential for this team to produce any results at all, and I don't have any reason to believe Bradley will deliver upon that."
I agree with you about our defence, although admittedly we have inexperience there in Mark Curran and Caolan McColgan, but these are promising players and the game time they got this year has really fast-tracked them. Defensively we look more solid than in recent seasons, thanks in part to not fielding smaller and lighter attacking wing-backs.

Our midfield is formidable, Jason McGee and Caolan McGonigle are really developing into class midfielders.

As for out front six, we've been lacking some key talent this season in Championship, we are missing Michael Langan, Niall O'Donnell, Shane O'Donnell, Ryan McHugh, Peadar Mogan, Paddy McBrearty and of course Michael Murphy. There are many other super talented players who could be starting or springing from the bench, likes of Odhran MacNiallais or Stephen McBrearty come to mind. I think injuries etc have been a secret blessing, as it has allowed new management to shore up our defence and give the likes of Mark Curran and Caolan McColgan game time.

I think when at full strength that Donegal and Tyrone are still the top two teams in Ulster, we are just severely depleted and its been a struggle.

Commodore (Donegal) - Posts: 1215 - 07/06/2023 09:49:27    2484643

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Replying To Scenicparish:  "The main problem is not our defence but runners from further out the field. When Derry broke forward we could not handle their pace and our defence had to deal with the extra men coming forward. Where you at the match????"
Go away now our defence has always been a problem since Lacey etc retired. If you think otherwise that's your prerogative. Hopefully we can build on last Sunday.

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2571 - 07/06/2023 10:17:12    2484657

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Replying To rorysboys:  "Agree another thing about yesterday have n Conal not a conveyor belt of young lads coming through that they have to rely on 35 year plus players. Must be demoralising for young lads. Good to see ciaran Gillespie back for gweedore but he seems way off it which would be expected after a horrible few years with injuries. TG4 must be praised for there excellent coverage."
You see if you actually watched Naomh Conail on a regular basis, you would see that our manager constantly plays young talent in the league.
We are actually county champions, so the manager doesn't need to justify his selection to rorysboys, lol.

We stayed with Derry up until it mattered, and that is a mental and fitness issue.
What is it the great managers used to call it, the championship quarter (third quarter). It's where most games are won or lost. We are weak mentally when the going gets tough, but to be fair to the players, it has been a turbulent year.
Nobody can judge the team this year with the whole shambles of the county board, players injured, players opting out, and the loss of MM.

If we get our house in order and start to rebuild next year with structure and build confidence and resilience, then we will know where we are talent wise.

I have faith in Donegal footballers, we just need to give them the right platform to produce there best.

The keeper (Donegal) - Posts: 711 - 07/06/2023 10:25:04    2484662

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