Shane O'Donnell gets his head around Donegal's ‘surreal' showdown with Louth
It's back to Ballybofey for Donegal this weekend, accompanied by the hope and expectation it is only a pit stop on the way to Croke Park.
Yet for Shane O'Donnell, getting back to
Donegal
has been the making of him as an intercounty footballer.
The St Eunan's man studied physical education and maths in DCU, during which time he tried to combine living in the capital and playing for Donegal.
He made his senior debut in 2022 but, given the travel and associated time demands, he stepped back from the Donegal squad the following season. The return of
Jim McGuinness
to the helm in 2024 prompted O'Donnell to recommit and now, having completed his studies, the 24-year-old is back living and working in Donegal, teaching at Deele College in Raphoe.
READ MORE
One of his teaching colleagues in the school is his Donegal team-mate Peadar Mogan.
Those home comforts have helped him produce some of his strongest showing so far for Donegal, while he was also named as the club player of the year following last season's county championship.
'I suppose the big thing for me there was getting home, I was in Dublin there for four years so it was very taxing on the body,' he recalls.
'Which kind of led to me taking the break as well. It is definitely a lot easier now being at home, it takes away the travelling.
'I was kind of nearly living out of the car at one stage. It is nice to be able to recover and rest, especially with the quick turnaround for games. I feel good at the minute and I am looking after the body really well.'
O'Donnell has started all seven of Donegal's championship games this summer and chipped in with 0-6, including a point against Mayo. Having emptied himself for the cause last Sunday, O'Donnell was brought ashore with just three minutes remaining.
So he was watching on from outside the white lines as Ciarán Moore jinked inside the Mayo defence and popped over a winning point with the last kick of the game. A draw would have been enough for Donegal to finish second as Tyrone were well in control against Cavan in the other group game.
Ciarán Moore celebrates clinching victory for Donegal against Mayo. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho
But while O'Donnell was aware of the permutations, he's not quite sure the players on the field had all the info.
'I suppose when you are caught up in those type of games and those type of moments you are not thinking about other things,' he says. 'It was hard to get messages on with the noise from the supporters, I think we were shouting a few things as well but they didn't hear us.
'There were a few boys probably shouting at [Ciarán] to kick it out and all that. And there were probably a few boys shouting at Shaun [Patton] then as well to drain the clock and wait for the hooter to go. But we're happy with how it turned out.'
McGuinness expressed his unhappiness about the venue choice after the victory, the Donegal manager feeling the game should have been set for an alternative neutral venue rather than Dr Hyde Park.
However, O'Donnell says the players tend to stay away from such matters and not get caught up worrying over where they play.
'There wouldn't be really much chat about it. I suppose with the big games you are kind of used to being on the road at this stage and you get your preparation done the night before with travelling down to hotels and so on.
'It's probably more of the logistics team that are dreading the thought of it. We are just happy to be playing in the big games and being at this stage of the All-Ireland series.'
Their prize for finishing second in the group is a home preliminary quarter-final against
Louth
at MacCumhaill Park on Sunday at 4pm. It is a straight knockout clash between the Ulster and Leinster provincial champions.
'It's kind of mad that all four of [the provincial winners failed] to make it to the quarter-finals, that we're all in the preliminary round.
'That's how much competition there is between all the teams. We took our eye off the ball I think against Tyrone so we're probably in the place that we deserve to be, second place in the group.
'It's all to play for now and I suppose one of us is going to go out between ourselves and Louth this weekend, which is again surreal that one of the provincial champions isn't even going to make it to the quarter-finals.'
Michael Murphy is still doing Michael Murphy things for Donegal. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho
If Moore was the game-winning hero for Donegal last Sunday, the imperious Michael Murphy was once again their player of the match. It is impossible to measure the exact impact of Murphy's return to the fold this season but it's fair to say the 2012 All-Ireland-winning captain has been immense for his county.
'He's a bit of an icon for a lot of us because there's a lot of young boys there that wouldn't have played with him beforehand,' says O'Donnell.
'Thankfully I was there for his last year under Declan Boner and Stephen Rochford so I was able to work with him for a year, but there are a lot of new faces there at the minute that wouldn't have seen him before.
'I think a lot of us now just kind of idolise him and look up to him.'
Getting Donegal and Murphy back to Croke Park is now the next target.
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Irish Daily Mirror
33 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Galway are due one huge display but I dread thought of penalties
There'll be no trophies given out in Limerick on Saturday evening, but the result will determine which of Micheál Donoghue or Liam Cahill ends the season in All-Ireland semi-final would represent Cahill's best performance yet as Tipperary manager. But lose and it'll be an anti-climax after a very decent showing in Munster, much like two years the last four would represent a decent year's work for Donoghue. Anything less and it will mean that they will have failed in the three biggest tests put down to them in this year's Championship.I would doubt if either side can take out Cork, if that's how it works out, but reaching a semi-final is not to be sniffed have struggled for consistency all year. Two things stand out with them for me - the lack of a goal threat and their inability to get up for every game. Worryingly, their work rate varies from match to they scored six goals against Antrim, but we were a man down and weren't set up as we normally would be they have to come with that bite this time. They had it against Dublin. It wasn't there against Kilkenny until it was too late. Kilkenny, for example, always have that bite. Galway need to find it more often.I feel that they are committing too many bodies back the field too. I can understand that to a degree, but sometimes they only have two in the opposition fairness to Donoghue, this is his first year with a different group to when he last managed Galway. It takes time. Cahill has had three years Tipp side were very hardworking against Limerick and had a massive game in Ennis against Clare which was all the more impressive for the fact that they withstood a fierce second half comeback, dug deep and found a way to win. They showed resilience when things were going against them - something that wasn't too apparent last year. Cahill made some big decisions in the off-season when cutting a couple of regulars from the panel, which can sometimes cause a manager to lose a group. But it appears to have had the opposite work rate and intensity is way up from 2024, especially from the forwards, who are tracking back in numbers but also getting back up the field swiftly. Fitness levels need to be off the charts for Doyle, Michael Breen and Eoghan Connolly have been very solid in the full-back line. Ronan Maher has played a captain's role at centre-back, or wherever he's asked to front, Jason Forde, Darragh McCarthy and Jake Morris are playing really well and, crucially, working extremely McGrath has recaptured some of his old form, which is great to see, and then you have the likes of his brother Noel, Oisin O'Donoghue and Sam O'Farrell coming off the bench, underlining their strength in depth up full-back line of Pádraic Mannion, Daithí Burke and Fintan Burke has been solid too and while Gavin Lee is a very talented hurler, I'm not sure he's holding the middle well enough for Fahy has done ok at wing-back but I feel he'd be a better option at Mannion is a top class forward who will score from anywhere and I'd expect that Tipp will man-mark him. Who that will be, I'm not sure. It won't be Maher, maybe Craig Morgan might be the Galway need Mannion no deeper than the middle of the field. He's too dangerous to be working back in Whelan is a player I've always rated highly but he hasn't hit the levels yet this year. I'd like to see him closer to goal in a two-man inside line alongside Brian Concannon, with Kevin Cooney drifting out. That's an inside line that could wreak serious havoc and supply the goals that Galway are Fleming is a different type of forward with a high workrate and is worth his spot, but Conor Cooney's struggles to break into the side puzzle me. He's a serious forward with goals in him.I expect that the game will be really tight and Tipperary have earned their status as favourites. But I believe that there's a big one in Galway and I'm going to give them the slight course, it could go to extra time and beyond. I only wish they wouldn't resort to penalties to decide the outcome and give the two teams a replay. On paper, Limerick should have way too much for Dublin and while I expect that they'll win, it mightn't be as straightforward as people have improved under new management this year, though they will have been very disappointed with their performance against Galway. They lacked the grunt that day that had been apparent in other games. I expect that it will be back I would imagine that losing their Munster title will have a massive impact on Limerick's attitude. It should fuel their hunger even interesting that the game isn't in a strictly neutral venue, as is normally the case for quarter-finals. Obviously Limerick are taking up the opportunity to play in Croke Park with an eye on an upcoming Park is a massive field with wide open areas and Limerick are so good at working the ball short that they will utilise every pocket of space that is I love about Limerick is how they vary their play. How they use the short ball to get to the half-forward line to take a long range score, or how they can bypass the opposition half-back line, with their ability to win 50-50 ball why I believe it's a smart call to play at Croke Park - it suits their style of Dublin, Paddy Smyth and John Bellew have been good at the back but it's Chris Crummey that makes them we were preparing to play Dublin with Antrim, one of the things that stood out was how much ball goes through Crummey out of defence. He's a solid defender but links up so well with the midfielders and forwards. But a huge aspect of this game is whether Crummey will sit back in the pocket or push forward on Cian Lynch and mark conundrum there is that you can't leave a big space in front of Aaron Gillane no matter how good the defender marking him is but, on the other hand, you can't give a playmaker like Lynch the freedom of the park can hope that a midfielder will drop and pick him up but that's a 50-50 situation; it will only come off some of the time. So Dublin need to pick someone to man-mark him and it's a big call because so much of Limerick's play goes through midfield battle should be interesting. Adam English has brought a lot to Limerick there.I expect Dan Morrissey to pick up the imposing John Hetherton and no better man for the job. Morrissey is an outstanding defender and, if there was a transfer market, he'd be highly sought Dublin forwards will need to work tirelessly to stop Limerick building from the back but, collectively, they'll need to scale new heights just to give themselves a chance Limerick will likely be in an uncompromising mood after the Munster final and should set up a mouth-watering semi-final with Kilkenny.
Irish Examiner
an hour ago
- Irish Examiner
West reawakes: Tipp greats English and Fox delight at division's revival
Last year, it seemed West Tipperary hurling had hit a nadir when no senior final took place for the first time in living memory. There was no opposition for Clonoulty-Rossmore, winners of the eight previous divisional senior titles. It had been hoped a combination of lower-grade clubs in the region would come together to form a team, but there was no interest. Cashel King Cormacs, who they had beaten comprehensively in the 2023 final, later went onto win the county's intermediate crown and will present Clonoulty-Rossmore with a challenge this year. However, the break in a storied competition going back nearly 100 years was a sad one. Tales about the thousands who flocked to the west matches are legendary but not to younger generations who - conditioned by the demise of the competition - believe them to be tall. 'Thank God Cashel have become senior to make a competition of West Tipperary this year because it had been desperate the last few years,' says Tipperary great Pat Fox of Éire Óg-Annacarty. 'For five years, Clonoulty and Éire Óg were playing in one game, the final, which was unbelievable really. We couldn't imagine that from our time when we had eight or nine senior teams in West Tipperary hurling, which was fantastic and the crowds were huge. Emigration would have played its part in the decline. We've been starved, to be honest.' Tipperary's Eoghan Connolly contests possession with Robbie Cotter and Brian Hayes of Cork. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile Fox's great partner Nicky English agrees. 'The drop in numbers and less clubs has been a massive factor. There have been several amalgamations like my own Lattin-Cullen with Aherlow. 'I'm not sure it has anything to do with how other sports are faring in the area. You have St Michael's soccer club doing well in Tipp town but there just haven't been the numbers in the rural areas.' Between 1987 and '91, a club from the west featured in four of the five senior Tipperary finals, winning three of them. Since then, only Clonoulty-Rossmore (1997 and 2018) have lifted the Dan Breen Cup. Inter-county-wise, that period in the late 1980s was as much a halcyon one for the region as Fox, Bonnar and English lit up the county's full-forward line and another four West Tipp men populated three other lines in the 1989 All-Ireland winning team. From seven in that Babs Keating team, the west's proportion had diminished to zero in 2010 when Liam Sheedy matched English's achievement of bringing back the Liam MacCarthy Cup to Tipperary for the first time in nine years. Defender Conor O'Brien from Fox's club came off the bench to ensure they weren't left out but there was no west man who saw action in the 2016 final success and like O'Brien Ger Browne was a used substitute three years later. However, there are fires being lit around Cashel, Dundrum and Tipperary town again. In Limerick on Saturday, there will be four west men in Liam Cahill's squad – Robert Doyle (Clonoulty-Rossmore), Eoghan Connolly and Oisín O'Donoghue (Cashel King Cormacs) and Johnny Ryan (Arravale Rovers). A third of the recent All-Ireland U20 winning team under Brendan Cummins hail from the division – Eoin Horgan and Adam Daly (Knockavilla-Donaskeigh Kickhams), Adam Ryan (Arravale Rovers), Conor Martin (Cappawhite) and O'Donoghue. Also on the bench was David Ryan, brother of senior panellist Johnny, who was an All-Ireland winning minor last year with his club-mate Adam Ryan and Darragh O'Hora from Solohead. 'When we won the U21 All-Ireland in '81, there was Johnny Farrell in goals, (Pat) Fox was corner-back, Mark McGrath, Ger O'Neill, Austin Buckley and myself from West Tipp,' recalls English. 'Then you had the '82 All-Ireland minor winning team that had the likes of John Kennedy, Colm Bonnar and John Leamy, so it's taken a long time to come around again. The West Tipp representation was borne out of those teams and a 1980 minor team, which was unusual at the time. The signs are positive once more.' The first Harty Cup success in their history, Cashel Community College's achievement against Thurles CBS two years pointed to foundations being laid for the future. Ten of the starters including Daly and O'Donoghue were from West Tipperary clubs. Hours before he is involved against Galway on Saturday, O'Donoghue's younger brother Cormac and first cousin Jamesie will be part of the Cashel King Cormacs team representing the county in the Féile in Ferns, Co Wexford. Cashel publican Fox never expects what happened in his playing days to be repeated but to have a healthier local involvement is huge. 'That was the height of it, I'd imagine. We never saw anything like that and it probably won't be the same again unless something drastic happens but there are some green shoots. Young Connolly, O'Donoghue and Doyle are giving us something to cheer about and that's all you want.' GOING WEST From a record seven players on Tipperary's All-Ireland SHC winning team of 1989, including the entire full-forward line, the west division's numbers dwindled in subsequent victorious seasons. However, there are four on Saturday's match-day panel, two starting against Galway, with the prospect of more: 2019 0. Used substitute: Ger Browne (Knockavilla-Donaskeigh Kickhams/Cashel King Cormacs). 2016 0 2010 0. Used substitute Conor O'Brien (Éire Óg-Annacarty-Donohill). 2001 3 – Thomas Costello (Cappawhite); Eugene O'Neill (same); Declan Ryan (Clonoulty-Rossmore). 1991 6 - Conal Bonnar (Cashel King Cormacs); Colm Bonnar (same); Declan Ryan; Pat Fox (Éire Óg-Annacarty); Cormac Bonnar (Cashel King Cormacs); Nicky English (Lattin-Cullen). 1989 7 – Conal Bonnar; John Kennedy (Clonoulty-Rossmore); Colm Bonnar; Declan Ryan; Pat Fox; Cormac Bonnar; Nicky English. Used substitute: Joe Hayes (Clonoulty-Rossmore).
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Dean Rock: Jim McGuinness wants people to think it's Donegal against the world
It felt like Jim McGuinness had ripped some pages from the Alex Ferguson playbook last Sunday - the chapter on 'us against the world'. The Donegal manager was apparently frustrated by the scheduling of Dr Hyde Park to host his team's All-Ireland round-robin match against Mayo . His remarks to that effect caused something of a dispute between Donegal and the GAA's Central Competitions Control Committee . But sweep away that thin veneer and maybe it was more about engineering a sense of Donegal against the world. Or the world against Donegal. Take your pick. It was about galvanising the squad, galvanising the county. It was more about what's to come rather than what has already taken place. READ MORE McGuinness doesn't strike me as somebody who expresses such sentiments without having first walked through the consequences in his head. It's all part of a plan and a strategy. McGuinness remarked: 'You're 38 minutes from Mayo's training ground. We're 3½ hours from Inishowen. It's not fair. If I don't say it, who's going to say it?' Having travel distances at hand showed this was a message McGuinness had pre-cooked and was keen to express. It wasn't really about the venue. It was about creating a siege mentality. Additionally, it was used as a deflection tactic because Donegal's level of performance probably wasn't where he would have wanted it to be last Sunday. The Mayo match rounded off a slightly disappointing group stage for Donegal. They never really reproduced the levels they showed in the Ulster final. Donegal players form a huddle before last Sunday's match against Mayo. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho Donegal would have targeted finishing top of their group, so the last few weeks haven't panned out as McGuinness and his management team would have liked. The preliminary quarter-final is a game they could have done without. So, it was an opportune time to rally the county behind a cause, stir up a 'them versus us' mentality. Ultimately, it creates a fuss around an issue that is not going to have any material impact on whether Donegal win the All-Ireland or not. Should they beat Louth in Ballybofey on Sunday, then Donegal will play the rest of their championship games at Croke Park. Moaning about a venue at this stage is incidental. However, it does allow the Donegal squad and their supporters to unite behind a perceived sense of unfairness and use it as a motivational tool for the weeks ahead. In that regard, McGuinness had nothing to lose by shaking a few trees in his post-match interview last Sunday. At this stage of the championship, teams will use whatever they can to gain an edge. If you should be beating a team by 20 points and you don't beat them by 20 points, then that's probably a sign of complacency or a lack of humility For years, it was thrown at Dublin about playing all our championship games in Croke Park. When we were asked about it, the message from the players and management was consistent – we are happy to play anywhere; we don't decide on venues. And we were happy to play outside of Croke Park. That wasn't just a throwaway comment. Looking back now, some of my fondest memories were going to play down the country. Those away trips were great for team-bonding and encouraging camaraderie. I would have liked to play in more of the grounds around the country. Donegal manager Jim McGuinness looks on from the sideline during last weekend's match against Mayo, which his team won by a point. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho But we were aware of the narrative out there around us playing in Croke Park. When our success reached a certain level during that era, everybody outside of Dublin wanted us to be beaten, which is understandable. We certainly used that as a motivating factor. It wasn't a central tenet of our preparations, but I think we kind of fed off that as a group. We got a huge amount of confidence during that period because the group was so tight-knit. The dressingroom became a sacred place – when we were in there, it felt like it was us against everybody else, and that worked for us. It wasn't about going out to prove people wrong – it was more about showing the opposition absolute respect. You do that by beating them by as much as possible. If you should be beating a team by 20 points and you don't beat them by 20 points, then that's probably a sign of complacency or a lack of humility because you are not doing what you should be doing. And I think there might have been an element of that in the comments by McGuinness last week. Donegal need to rediscover their form from earlier in the championship, because in the defeat to Tyrone and for parts of last week's win over Mayo, they weren't doing what they should have been doing in terms of putting the opposition away. Instead, that result hung in the balance right until the last kick of the ball. Donegal's Ciarán Moore celebrates scoring the late winning point against Mayo. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho Given how the second half panned out, Donegal could quite easily have ended up losing and found themselves finishing third in the group and now facing the prospect of a trip to Killarney this weekend. So, while McGuinness will be pleased by the character and ruthlessness they showed to win the game, it wasn't as convincing a victory for Donegal as they probably would have liked. Instead, it was another draining 70 minutes for a team that has played more games than most in this year's championship. Sunday's preliminary quarter-final will be Donegal's eighth outing having already played Derry, Monaghan, Down, Armagh, Tyrone, Cavan and Mayo. Only Meath have played as many matches as Donegal – and the Royals have avoided the prelims. So, perhaps McGuinness just felt now was the right time to spark a little fire. You cannot keep the 'us against the world' psychology going for six months but it's something that can be helpful in a shorter window. There are just five weeks until the All-Ireland final, so McGuinness probably reasoned that leaning into it now would pull the group nice and tight for the journey ahead. There is probably a bit of pressure on the group as well because the expectation levels have increased – Donegal are fancied by many to win the All-Ireland. Patrick McBrearty and Michael Murphy celebrate in the dressingroom after Donegal beat Armagh in the Ulster SFC final in May. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho McGuinness delivered Sam Maguire in year two during his first term in charge and so parallels will be drawn between 2012 and 2025. One key difference is that for this group, 2025 looks like their best shot at winning the All-Ireland. Donegal made it back to an All-Ireland final two years after the 2012 triumph, but I wouldn't be as convinced this group will still be as competitive two seasons from now as they currently are. Michael Murphy, for one, is unlikely to be still togging out for the county. Will McGuinness still be there? Key players like Patrick McBrearty and Ryan McHugh have spent well over a decade in the trenches. I think it's pretty much now for this Donegal team. The players know this team's window for success will not be open forever. That all adds to the pressure. And with the team not performing as well as they should, maybe that's why this 'us against them' messaging emerged from the Donegal camp last weekend. Because, let's be honest, Donegal are not exactly the most loathed team in the country. Far from it, I would have thought. They are expected to beat Louth on Sunday and I believe that is exactly what will happen, but Ger Brennan's Leinster champions have nothing to lose and I'd expect them to bring a decent performance. Donegal's Oisín Gallen signs autographs after the game against Cavan at the start of June. Photo: Lorraine O'Sullivan/Inpho Beyond that, Donegal will need more from the likes of McBrearty and Oisín Gallen in supporting Michael Murphy up top. Gallen, for me, is the key. He was exceptional last year, won an All Star and brought that real x-factor quality to his play, but I don't think he has got back to those high standards this season. All it takes for a player of his ability to find his mojo again is one good game. If he can deliver a big performance against Louth, then Donegal will travel to Croke Park as a much more formidable outfit. Either way, the Ulster champions are likely to be among the last eight when the quarter-finals take centre stage next weekend. Because the racket last Sunday about venues wasn't really about Dr Hyde Park, it was about benefiting Donegal when they get to Croke Park.
