Quote from: screenexile on April 16, 2024, 04:55:57 PMBookies only giving this one a 3pt handicap so they're wary of McGuinness and whatever shenanigans he comes up with.
I would love for us to beat Donegal this weekend but this is their AIF and do we really have the hunger to go after another Ulster title given the hardship it will entail? I don't doubt the team will be telling themselves they want to win every game but how realistic is that nowadays?
If we win that's great, but if we got beat without any big injuries I wouldn't be that disappointed.
I understand the caution of you Derry lads and the bookies also, but to this point, this new Donegal team are completely untested.
Leaving aside the injuries/fitness of a few of our key players (I haven't seen any update on McBrearty, McHugh, Ban or McCole), we're relying on a lot of lads who are either new to this high level of football or who haven't exactly passed the test with flying colours in the past. The likes of Langan and Thompson can swing point after point over the bar from the 45, but they can also be squeezed out of games completely. We didn't respond to the high pressure too well in games like Mayo 2019, Cavan 2020 or Derry/Armagh 2022 (I'll leave out Tyrone 2021 due to the Murphy penalty miss and red card!).
I think we'll give a good account of ourselves for 55-60 minutes, but Derry just look stronger, more experienced and battle-hardened across all the lines and will win by six or seven points in the end.
Time for healing ahead of the group stages for us.