Ageing Donegal haven’t the legs to keep pace with talented Erne men
THE big fear before a ball was kicked this summer was how predictable the Championship would be. Well, after 14 matches, no team has beaten a team from a higher division in the National League. Not only that, but when teams who were in the same division met, the team that finished higher also emerged victorious.
The Championship needs a shock to ignite it and all eyes will be on Ballybofey today to see if Fermanagh can provide it. They were a breath of fresh air last summer, injecting the summer with a freshness, a passion and a never-say-die approach.
And long before Donie Kingston did so in Kilkenny last week, Fermanagh had exposed certain weaknesses in the Dublin full-back line in Croke Park last August – and that was a Dublin defence with Rory O’Carroll and Jack McCaffrey. I saw them against Galway in the League, when they drew in Tuam despite playing the whole second half with 14 men.
In Tomás Corrigan, they have an exceptional forward who is brimming with ambition. His two points from the sideline against Antrim reminded me of Maurice Fitzgerald down in Thurles in 2001. And Corrigan did something similar against Roscommon last year, so he has that weapon in his arsenal.
He would walk onto any team in the country and Fermanagh have plenty of talented forwards. Ryan McCluskey has been there since 2004 and offers them great leadership, Eoin Donnelly and Seán Quigley are a threat to any team.
This year will be different for Fermanagh, though, as everyone now knows the quality in their side. Donegal will be very much on their guard. Opinion is divided on Rory Gallagher’s team. They lost five successive games in the League. They blew a seven-point lead in Monaghan and looked a leggy and weary outfit against Dublin in the League semi-final.
Was Gallagher timing his team’s run for the Championship or have they run out of steam? I feel the legs of this Donegal team are gone. They have just put in five intense seasons, four under Jim McGuinness and one under Gallagher. No team can keep going through that rigorous, mental and physical examination.
Watching Monaghan last weekend, it struck me that Malachy O’Rourke has managed to keep his team fresher than Gallagher has done with Donegal. And O’Rourke probably has less options and less to work with.
This is a big season for Donegal and their manager. If they come unstuck today, the judgement won’t be kind. History will show that Gallagher took over a team in decline and he wasn’t able to reinvigorate them. However, a big, spectacular win and everything will be seen in a different light.
But even if Donegal survive today, Gallagher will have to negotiate a path through the qualifiers because I think Monaghan will beat them the next day. And taking a tired and ageing team through the scenic route is not an easy task.
Sligo’s surprise win over Roscommon last year was what sparked the Championship to life. But I don’t see a repeat in Dr Hyde Park today. Ross Donovan and David Kelly, two important players, are no longer there so Sligo are in a bit of transition. There is some decent young talent in the county. Kyle Cawley, who is only doing his Leaving Certificate this year, was the star of the Summerhill College team who narrowly missed out on the Hogan Cup final while Niall Murphy impressed for the Sigersonwinning UCD team.
And that they were able to go to Newbridge and beat Kildare, when they needed to, during the League is a very good sign. Sligo are clearly learning some good habits under Niall Carew and he was quite bullish in his assessment of this game during the week, saying Roscommon have to prove themselves in the Championship. All the same, I expect the Rossies to be in a Connacht final this evening.
Looking at all six games today, maybe the most likely to produce a shock is in Parnell Park. There’s no certainty that Meath are going to beat Louth. Meath barely survived in Division 2 while Louth are on their uppers, and already have a Championship game under their belt. The Royals have been inactive for 10 weeks, and a manager never truly knows how a team is going until the first few minutes of the Championship.
The transition that has taken place in Meath over the past few years has been incredible. No other county has experienced such a turnover of players. Mick O’Dowd has lost an awful lot of quality through injuries and early retirement. He has been dealt difficult cards but has managed the situation pretty well. If his side isn’t in a tailspin altogether, they should have enough for their neighbours.
Westmeath are in freefall. The bottom has fallen out of the whole thing for the county since last year’s Leinster final appearance. And once a team is in a losing habit, it’s difficult to arrest the decline. They are facing an Offaly side who’s trajectory seems to be the complete opposite after their first win in Leinster in nine years.
If Clare were playing Cork, we might have had a shock in Munster but it’s hard to see them beating Kerry in Killarney. So maybe all eyes should be on Ballybofey, for a result to give this summer a spark.