Wasn't looking forward to this game , was surprised very enjoyable , type of pitch and weather means it wont have a bearing come the summer , concentration killed Donegal giving up possession which is very unlike them , big turning point was I think it was McBrearty who got a point when a goal was on . nice edge and pace to the game .

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 16/03/2015 10:09:41    1703213

A decent match I thought. Kerry will be hard toppled this year in my opinion. The corner back, Paul Murphy is it? is a superb player.
I thought we offered a bit more variety in our play than usual, which was nice to see. A lot of work needed yet however. If we win the Tyrone game in a few weeks we should be safe, but it's hard to know what way both managers will approach that one, with the Championship encounter looming.

Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9155 - 16/03/2015 10:42:37    1703246

Donegal in enteraining game!!! Shock horror!!!!

Seriously though, you never know what the league is going to throw up, who saw the Dublin, Mayo result coming either?

None of this will have much bearing on the championship later in the year as all the top teams are a long way off full fitness.

MuckrossHead (Donegal) - Posts: 5028 - 16/03/2015 11:27:12    1703279

Well isn't nice to see people parsing a game of Gaelic football on here for once! Aye, its hard to really read into anything with the League, Mayo give us a hiding, we beat Dublin, Dublin give Mayo a hiding etc etc.

Monaghan have really turned things around so it looks like either Tyrone and Donegal might be the likest now to follow Derry down. Their match will have some spice to it in that context!

TheHermit (Kerry) - Posts: 6354 - 16/03/2015 11:35:11    1703284

Was a great game yesterday and was heartened by many aspects of the game, I do believe that we will see a very more direct Donegal this year, with murph and paddy inside, to me this would be the obvious ploy as these are two of the best inside forwards curently in the game, yesterday also proved to me how an important player Odhran Mac Niallis is to us, he is the link man between the half forward and full forward line who has the potential to chip in with a few scores which is what we badly need, we need more scores from the half forward line, another positive is that our panel seems to be getting stronger when you consider we had Colm Mc fadden and Anthony Thompson coming off the bench yesterday and Odhran and frank Mc Glynn not even togged out... Things not as bad as I thought they were this time last week......

Agree with some previous posters about Kerry will be hard toppled this year and for the next few years to be honest, also agree that the wee defender for Kerry, Paul Murphy is a class act...... Reminds me of a young Karl Lacey, can do a man marking job but can also get up the field to very good effect as his point yesterday and in the AI final last September proves this....

ben1977 (Donegal) - Posts: 364 - 16/03/2015 11:47:18    1703292

GaryMc82
County: Derry
Posts: 1628



Don't mind Spillane, sure he also said last night that Dublin were humiliated down in Kerry???

realdub (Dublin) - Posts: 8597 - 16/03/2015 11:54:03    1703294

Gary, as i'm sure you're aware of, Pat Spillane in facts knows very little about the Donegal squad and you're right about the over 30s comment, must have heard him use that a dozen times in different places and it's not even accurate!

Donegal will be okay come championship, Gallagher needs to lose the idea of playing Mark McHugh religiously.. He isn't offering much at all since he has come back. Lateral movement, poor passing and giving out to other players have been the height of his contributions to date. Not sure about Eamon Doherty either.

Donegal_abroad (Donegal) - Posts: 1321 - 16/03/2015 12:00:30    1703300

Am happy with the game yesterday despite losing it. Lots to take from it. I cant fault any of our lads, for the simple reason that they went out to have a go instead of digging a trench on the 30 metre line. McB looking very lively indeed. I hope he continues his good form. As for Kerry, they will be very hard to beat in either league or championship this year. It will be interesting to see how they close out the league.

I would also say that we will surly be a happier camp this year if we continue to play this sort of football. Players can express themselves and have a go.

As for the game v tyrone in 2 weeks, this is tough stuff. I dont want to call it, but the reality is that there is a hell of a lot at stake, and we will most likely be giving it the big one rather than going in about 70 or 80%. Interesting league this year

Donegalman (None) - Posts: 3830 - 16/03/2015 12:11:46    1703310

Jonny Buckley Motm ahead of Moran ha what a joke Moran was unbelievable who gives out these awards?

clondalkindub (Dublin) - Posts: 9926 - 16/03/2015 16:40:10    1703483

Donegal_abroad
County: Donegal
Posts: 317

1703300 Gary, as i'm sure you're aware of, Pat Spillane in facts knows very little about the Donegal squad and you're right about the over 30s comment, must have heard him use that a dozen times in different places and it's not even accurate!

Donegal will be okay come championship, Gallagher needs to lose the idea of playing Mark McHugh religiously.. He isn't offering much at all since he has come back. Lateral movement, poor passing and giving out to other players have been the height of his contributions to date. Not sure about Eamon Doherty either.

In fairness I thought Martin O'Reilly, Hugh McFadden and Eamon Doherty have been excellent for Donegal this year, and I keep hearing about Eoin McHugh as big name in the making. I only really seen Doherty on telly in the Cork game, but was superb at full back.

Mark McHugh was poor last year for Donegal, and I thought he cost them the Div 2 title, by failing to trek back and cover the back post. However he is a smart footballer, and if he clicks, Donegal would have a superb running half back again.

GaryMc82 (Derry) - Posts: 3017 - 16/03/2015 18:03:34    1703527

Mark McHugh was poor last year for Donegal, and I thought he cost them the Div 2 title, by failing to trek back and cover the back post. However he is a smart footballer, and if he clicks, Donegal would have a superb running half back again.

I agree 100% with this post. Donegal are not far off the mark but McHugh is way off his best form & spends more time complaining to his fellow players & the ref than I like.

Get him back to top form & Donegal will really look good.

MuckrossHead (Donegal) - Posts: 5028 - 16/03/2015 19:10:33    1703565

clondalkindub
County: Dublin
Posts: 5881

1703483 Jonny Buckley Motm ahead of Moran ha what a joke Moran was unbelievable who gives out these awards?

ah come on now. Johnny Buckley had a brilliant game yesterday. he was everywhere, never lost possession, broke up attacks, started attacks, took scores carried the ball superbly, fielded brilliantly. sure Moran had an immense game too but you can't take away Buckley's MOTM award, It was well-merited. How he didn't make it on to the Hogan Stand team of the week is a joke.

s goldrick (Cavan) - Posts: 5518 - 16/03/2015 21:42:01    1703646

Agree with GaryMc and Muckross

A little disconcerting to see Mark McHugh constantly complaining to his fellow teammates and the referee. Needs to concentrate on his own game. Nothing like having a go at your teammates to lower morale and something that Rory Gallagher needs to sort out sooner rather than later. Get Mark back to playing the type of football we know he is capable of and we won't be too far away come championship time.

Lifford Gael (Donegal) - Posts: 1925 - 16/03/2015 21:52:43    1703653

Your right my post was giving out the impression that Buckley was good which isn't true he had a great game but I just thought Moran was on another level to everyone else on the pitch and for me was the motm. Not sure how good Mark Mchugh is when he's not being protected by Donegal's blanket defence which they didn't really operate on Sunday.

clondalkindub (Dublin) - Posts: 9926 - 17/03/2015 08:42:51    1703661

Ye got to love Spillane , he talked abot Kerry should have won by more against Donegal, That Kerry humiliated Dublin a couple of weeks ago and about Kerry humiliating Cork last year. Talk about being selective.

AthCliath (Dublin) - Posts: 4347 - 17/03/2015 20:01:18    1703875

clondalkindub
County: Dublin
Posts: 5882

1703661 Your right my post was giving out the impression that Buckley was good which isn't true he had a great game but I just thought Moran was on another level to everyone else on the pitch and for me was the motm. Not sure how good Mark Mchugh is when he's not being protected by Donegal's blanket defence which they didn't really operate on Sunday.

I agree with you on Moran, I rate him as possibly Kerry's most vital or Important players. His midfield ability and work rate is superb, but he is right up their with all the other top 3 or 4 midfielders in Ireland.

I wouldn't agree with Mark McHugh being protected by their blanket in the past, as I actually thought he was what made their blanket so tight in 2011/2012. At that stage I felt Mark McHugh was the most naturally gifted sweeper in the game, with his Immense stamina and smart runs forward made him a massive asset for an ultra defensive Donegal.

He has never really re-appeared since then for Donegal, and he struggled with Injury and Concussion in 2013. And of course last year he had a lacklustre league and then he took time to the US. Some of the Donegal fans reckon he does more mouthing to other players than is probably welcome, so maybe a he needs a good kick in the arse to wake him up and get him to refocus.

GaryMc82 (Derry) - Posts: 3017 - 18/03/2015 09:38:57    1704003

This was rather good quality for a league game, I think, and I struggle to see the negativity referred to by some others on this thread, other than perhaps a couple of skirmishes before half-time. Donegal had a couple of bad wides in the last ten minutes or so and that is what cost them, though Kerry themselves blew a few goal chances, especially in the first half.

Anyone else think that Tommy Walsh is struggling to readjust to gaelic football a bit? Ok, it's still early doors, but his kicking has been off since he came back, which perhaps shouldn't be a surprise (saw four of Kerry's league games this season).

Gleebo (Mayo) - Posts: 2208 - 18/03/2015 10:18:45    1704032

The most pleasing thing for us is that we put in a 70 minute performance. We haven't done that in a long time. Patrick McBrearty must have one of the best left feet in the business. Hugh McFadden had a good game, as did Eamon McGee. Obviously we came up short, but there was loads of fight in us. We also played a reasonable brand of football which was good too.

But to be honest, I'd rather you were all writing about how ugly we played but won the match than applaud us for playing a reasonable, but losing, brand of football.

It leaves us in a pretty grim position to get at least 3 points from Tyrone and Mayo.

squareball_1988 (Donegal) - Posts: 343 - 18/03/2015 11:14:52    1704054

Gleebo
I was thinking the same thing my self, how can he be having so much trouble with a round ball , something he's been kicking since he was 2-3 years old, but it's not just his kicking I expected him to come back from oz and be physically imposing but he was easily jostled off the ball in games as well ( fairly I might add ) but I can't see him making much of an impression in this years championship but hopefully he will in 2016. Luckily we're not stuck for forwards this year so he has time.
As for David Moran it's hard to imagine that he wasn't even a starter for us in the quarterfinal against Galway last year he only got his chance coz Sheehan got injured after 5 mins. It was a big turning point for us.

KingdomBoy1 (Kerry) - Posts: 14092 - 18/03/2015 11:17:53    1704058

Kingdomboy1
Whats the story with Sheehan? He's a brilliant player and gave an exhibition on free taking on Sunday but he seems to be made of glass and picks up injuries regularly. It seems he can't get a decent run at games with injuries but when he does play he's one of the best on the 45 around.

Tir Conaill Abu (Donegal) - Posts: 1671 - 18/03/2015 11:32:48    1704059