Paddy McBrearty has stressed that Donegal will be travelling to Croke Park on Sunday with the intention of winning.

The Allianz League Division 2 final is a repeat of last year's Ulster decider, which Monaghan won in sensational fashion, and McBrearty sees it as an opportunity for Donegal to build up further momentum ahead of their Ulster SFC opener against Derry on May 25, despite having already achieved their primary goal of winning promotion straight back to Division 1.

"Things didn't go our way last year at all through injuries and what not. The day we played Monaghan in the Ulster final, they were fully deserving of their win," the highly-rated forward told RTE.

"They were outstanding, the intensity they brought that day was unbelievable. We got one up on them this year by beating them in Letterkenny in the third league game.

"We're happy with where we are at. Our first objective at the start of the year was to get back up to Division 1 which we've done. It'd be an extra bonus to get back as champions and get momentum leading into the championship.

"There is a lot of freshness within the squad this year. There is five or six new leads and they've brought a competitive edge. They're young and enthusiastic.

"They want to get into the team which is obviously bringing up the level of training. We're in a really good place. We have Derry in four weeks which is our ultimate goal.

"But make no mistake, we are taking Sunday very seriously against a top team in Monaghan." Tweet

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