Donegal GAA Discussion Thread

Alvin Holler · 18-06-2023 10:00pm

Delighted with the attitude yesterday. Obviously we're not going to win the all Ireland but at least we're trying to play good football.

Nice to see McFadden and Jamie Brennan playing well. Had no confidence in Brennan hitting that free but he made it. Patton and mccole are really standing up as leaders.

Going to be a tricky game next week the way the results went today. Still feel we might end up getting hammered in a qf like cork did to us in 09 but may as well enjoy the journey.

henke · 18-06-2023 11:27pm

Fair play to them though this group stage overall has been positive from where we were. I recall after the Down loss we just wanted this year over with and that feeling continued into the first half of the Clare game but since then they have shown some fight. Any tie we get will be tough but would hope can make a good fist of it in Ballybofey and a QF really would be bonus territory for the year we have had.

There are some good players there and if we could avoid a tanking and show something in the next 1 or 2 matches then there is something to build on for next year.

Would people keep O'Rourke and Bradley on as the management team if we got to a QF and make a credible performance?

crazyfool · 19-06-2023 8:44am

Tyrone

The Moist Buddha · 19-06-2023 9:38am

yup outta that!

Triboro · 19-06-2023 4:11pm

Saturday at 7

babybuilder · 24-06-2023 7:48pm

Halftime. Tyrone getting easier scores but playing with wind. Shaky start by Donegal. Pressure on our kick out plus poor turn overs conceded by us. We are so poor tackling. We need two or three more quality backs. The experience of the Tyrone press aid with the wind in Donegal faces.

babybuilder · 24-06-2023 8:12pm

Poor half forward line. Non existent from O baoill, Thompson and Brennan. Tyrone different league. McFadden and McGonigle really poor as well. A game too far.

Redsoxfan · 24-06-2023 8:58pm

That was their most convincing victory of the Championship. Felt like we were never in the game. No hiding from the issues on or off the pitch now. The road back to being a competitive team with the best is long and hard.

Ceist_Beag · 24-06-2023 9:03pm

**** season ends poorly, time now to deal with the issues behind the scenes that led to us being so poor.

babybuilder · 24-06-2023 9:23pm

Time to start playing competitive football from schools, club and county underage. Enough of the basketball dross witnessed at every football game in the county.

Redsoxfan · 25-06-2023 7:55pm

AOR gone anyway.

Who knows who's next.

crazyfool · 26-06-2023 12:06pm

Well, it's hard to know what to think after that performance.

I landed in Ballybofey feeling cautiously optimistic after our performance in Omagh but that optimism faded rapidly after the first 5 minutes.

Tyrone were by far the better team and I never saw that performance coming from them. We were bullied all over the pitch, they were more physical, hungrier, faster, fitter and got their points so much easier.

Nobody stood out for us, all we can do is draw a line under this year and move on.

Where is Donegal football going from here? I have no idea. Unless we get our house in order rapidly I would fear we might not be competitive again in Ulster for a number of years.

Given the county board debacle do we think Kavanagh/Lacey will put their names forward for the position?

It will need to be someone strong who will have the belief and support of the current players and those who stepped back.

charlie14 · 27-06-2023 1:41pm

Not much to take from that performance other than Gallen showing that with help he could do serious damage. We were pretty much a shambles all over the pitch. Physically bullied, unable to win a breaking ball around the middle again back to carrying the ball into contact. We should at least know by now how suicidal that is against Tyrone. Scond half we had three Donegal players marking each other while a Tyrone player was standing alone yards outside them taking all the time he need recieve a cross field pass and put it over the black spot.

In fairness to the squad they did give a bit of hope that there is some potential from the 2nd half onwards against Clare after what has to have been a rough year on them, so to menion names would be unfair, but it is now obvious imo that there are some in that squad that are simply not good enough.

I though that as the game went on there were some who didn`t want the ball anywhere near them. Patten hitting, by my count, four kick outs in a row to our left wing to have each caught by the same Tyrone player standing on the same spot each time was crazy and demorolising, but then nobody seemed to me to be showing for it anywhere else.

Diificult to see where we go from here. After all that has gone on I cannot see, as another poster suggested Kavanagh or Lacey being interested, but at least for whoever does take over Division 2 league may give more of a chance for rebuilding as going from Saturday we would end up shipping some heavy defeats in Division 1 which would not do much for the morale of this squad. First order of the day for me anyway would be strength and conditioning, and while some of the frees were soft enough, we really need to work on tackling. It really is abysmal.

downthemiddle · 01-07-2023 1:15pm

https://www.donegaldaily.com/2023/07/01/search-for-new-donegal-manager-officially-begins-1/

I'm sure we all have complete faith in the process after the wonderful job the same people in charge did last time.

overshoot · 01-07-2023 3:00pm

Think an outline for a transition process elsewhere could help make it a tad more appealing for applicants

.... And maybe an external interview panel

Redsoxfan · 02-07-2023 10:45pm

Regan already ruling himself out.

Peter Campbell sounded like he was advocating for McHugh and McHugh.

ghostfacekilla · 03-07-2023 12:50pm

Pity about Regan, but he may be a candidate in the future. He’s still young. I think McHugh, like any candidate would be a gamble. His success has been mixed, but I think his level of involvement in GAA on a national level in recent years, would save him from being ignorant to what is required from a level of preparation in regards fitness at the very least. His analysis doesn’t strike me as a man who’d be tactically astute in today’s game, but the right man in your backroom could solve that. He’d draw a decent backroom team with his profile and stature, even if he chooses to involve young and relatively inexperienced Mark and could perhaps better utilise or get the best out of Ryan on his return from injury, who quite frankly looked incredibly frustrated in the last two years. It could be the fire that McBrearty needs after a steep decline in threat in recent years. It won’t be an attractive post due to underperformance and off field issues so we could probably do worse. Trying out managers without club or underage or senior intercounty mananging success like Murphy, Lacey or even Kavanagh at this point seems like shooting ourself in a foot we’ve wounded far too many times. Stability is key at this stage of the pantomine. I’d still probably prefer Micky Harte over him, to nurture a group for a few years until we find someone capable of having a tilt at Silverware in the autumn. I have a hope/feeling that the county board will try and sweep the justified negativity under the carpet with a high profile appointment in order to save their bacon, but time will tell.

ArnoldJRimmer · 03-07-2023 11:38pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120798979#Comment_120798979

Some very valid points there about the advantages and disadvantages of the various candidates. Then you ruined it by mentioning that abomination from Tyrone. Would rather they gave the gig to Wee Daniel with a backroom team of Bernard McHugh and Dana than that lad. Unless you meant Mickey Joe Harte

downthemiddle · 05-07-2023 9:45pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120801903#Comment_120801903

The players have approached someone to come back as manager. I just can't see it happening as long as the county board remains unchanged. His relationship with them was fraught previously.

Redsoxfan · 05-07-2023 10:08pm

Who would that be now...

Michael Murphy rules himself out.

sob1467 · 05-07-2023 10:29pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120798979#Comment_120798979

Haha forget Jimmy's Winning Matches, we'll all be singing "We got the goal tonight"....

As an aside he cannot do any worse than our county board!

charlie14 · 07-07-2023 1:11pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120810998#Comment_120810998

If we are talking about the same person that told someone touted for the job before the last appointment he would be happy to work with him but only in the background, I honestly cannot see it. With the present county board I cannot see him touching it with a barge pole, and I would not blame him.

downthemiddle · 07-07-2023 1:22pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817908#Comment_120817908

Yeah. We have the cart before the horse on this one. We need to sort out the structural issues first. No manager with any ambition would work with the current regime.

ghostfacekilla · 13-07-2023 9:18am

The ladies in an All Ireland Quarter Final this Sunday. Fr Dougal, I feel could have managed the wealth of talent in that squad over the last few years to an all Ireland and I’ve no doubt in my mind of Maxi’s ambitions to manage the men’s seniors. The CV could already be in for this round. He didn’t set the world alight at underage county management attempts, LYIT or when he trained Gaoth Dobhair.

charlie14 · 13-07-2023 12:39pm

I laughed when I read that first, but then realised that on proven form the county board is such a cluster fcuk that it could even possibly attempt to appoint him.