Messages

Damn right J70 some of these armchair fans back home could do with going out and actually supporting the team instead of making pronouncements that we are now after Round 3 going to win the league.I,m sure Mc Iver whilst disappointed on losing in Omagh knew that he could galvanise the team to beat the Dubs in a much more important match.You can be sure that Harte will use similar motivational tools to get Tyrone back in contention on March 10th.
Anyway we won well with the 4 point margin not a true reflection of our superiority.We still have'nt learned how to kill off games when in the ascendancy as it should have been 2-5 to 0-0 after twenty minutes.Then of course the opposition take the iniative in the last 15 minutes of the first half and peg back the deficit.Of course we should be confident for our prospects this year as this squad is the strongest ever IMO.We can turn over Tyrone in two weeks and the playoffs are there for us.However Dublin were very poor and had no forwards that threatened to do any damage unless you count Bonner and the petulance of lickle Alan Brogan.How Bonner remained on the field after receiving a yellow and black book only Brian Crowe will ever know.He must have fouled at least on four subsequent occasions.As for the hallion Whelan with his only contribution to the match to take Rory out off the ball speaks volumes for his attitude.

Paul Durcan 7.5 His kickouts this year have improved greatly but doubts remain over his ability to field high ball.Christ the man is 6' 7''
The Cork nightmare still has to be banished from his psyche.
Tommy Donoghue 7.5 His man scored two points but can feel unlucky as he slipped on both occasions.Has come on from last year and is first choice cover with Mc Glynn for both a corner or wing back spot.
Paddy Campbell 7.0 Picked up a few hefty knocks but was able to reduce Bonner to scraps
Neil Mc Gee 8.0  Class act this boy
Barry Dunnion 8.0 Had 'superstar' Brogan in his pocket all day
Kevin Cassidy 7.5 Solid without being influential as in previous matches.Has two weeks to recover from rib injury.
Paddy Mc Conigely 7.5 Cunny is consistently playing himself into the 1st choice wing back position snuffing out the Dublin attack with his man being replaced to no effect.
Neil Gallagher 7.5 Took some fine fetches and funnelled back in secondhalf closing out Dublin attacks in the full back line.However allowed Dublin to claw back the lead at the end of the first half by going AWOL
Barry Monaghan 8.0 First start at midfield and jury still out.Got thru a wojious amount of work and is the de facto leader in the team.
Rory Kavanagh 8.0 Back after injury in Armagh game and should have taken goal chance but was being pulled back at time.Best game so far this year and more direct with passing.Similar playing style to Bonner and will be difficult to find a way of playing both.
Brian Roper 7.0 Nothing spectacular doing the basics well but pace has diminished and does,nt seem capable of going past a player down the wing instead of always coming back inside with a square hand pass.
Johnny Mc Loone 7.0 Again did not make an impact in open play but stroked over a peach of a 45 against the wind.
Ciaran Bonner 8.0 Ran his socks off as per and kicked fine point in opening minutes.On end of plenty of cynical Dublin fouling off the ball.
Brendan Devenney 8.0 Roasted both his markers for the day and by far and away our best forward in open play this year.
Colm Mc Fadden 7.5 First start and game will hopefully bring him on.Still needs to put more effort in open play but took point well.A couple of passess inside to devenney and Mc Loone fell short but he does give the option of the high ball in when needed.

Subs:
Eamon Mc Gee 7.0 Sound and like Toye will hopefully learn that his place is no longer automatic
Christy Toye 6.5 Anonymous where was he?
Adrian Sweeney 7.0 Tarried around midfield for last ten minutes and placed a couple of expansive passes to open up the play a la Mayo game.
Wappa and Joe Friel not on long enough to rate.

All my current first choices in backs and midfield apart from Durcan.Michael Boyle should have got a start and Johnny Mc Loone on the wing has'nt impressed in the two Mc Kenna Cup matches he featured in.I hope to see Michael Hegarty before half time with Wappa and Adie in the second half.Glad he dropped Toye and hope the bench spurs him on to regain some form.Even so I would be very disappointed if we cannot beat that Dublin team as 6 points going to Omagh will be required.

The Park in Ballyshannon

Tyrone were the better team with fairly good reward from scoring opportunities presented.We should have been outta sight at half time and by my reckoning had 13 missed chances in the first half alone.It's absolutely dire for county players to kick four shots weakly into the keeper's hands whilst 8 of the 9 wides were relatively staight forward point chances.Played very well defensively in the first fifteen minutes and 3 of the four Tyrone points in the opening half were via unforced errors by Donegal men.The confidence drain in front of goal was confirmed in the second half and the sending off as is so often the case benifited the 14 men of Tyrone.The last goal put a gloss on the scoreline with the last attacks by Donegal focussing solely on trying to raise a green flag.Mc Iver could have put Hegarty on much earlier as the supply to Devenney and Wappa dried up in the second half.I still think based on the first half display that we can beat the Dubs in the Park on Sunday provided we bring some shooting boots with us.Hopefully this defeat does'nt set the confidence back too far as two points on Sunday should see us safe for next year regardless of what happens in the rest of the league.Anyway 12 finals and counting...............................

Ciaran Sharkey 6.5 Kickouts were good but feel he should have been quicker out to close down Mc Cullagh and hopefully Michael Boyle will start on Sunday

Frank Mc Glynn 7.5 Really tightly marked the speedy corner forward and hopefully has'nt pulled the hamstring when subbed

Paddy Campbell 6.5 What himself and Barry Monaghan were doing so far out of position for their first goal beggars belief.Will be under pressure from Neil Mc Gee for the full back spot as the year progresses.

Eamon Mc Gee 6.0 Not a natural corner back with some very loose marking.The constant positional changes have caused his form to dip and is not the same player as last year.

Barry Dunnion 8.0 Our best player who constantly broke forward and took a fair few hits in the process.Absolute beast of an engine.

Barry Monaghan 6.5 Played well in first half but was lost as extra man and AWOL for goal.Talk of a midfield berth is wide of the mark as too one paced.Found himself in central position 40m out and opted to pass when simple point chance on offer.

Paddy Mc Conagely 7.0 Good opening and played well throughout but if his man broke the tackle could be caught for pace.Still has realistic chance of wing back position come the Summer.

Neil Gallagher 7.0 Some fine fetches in first half but still not fully up to match pace.Caught in possession and slow to release early ball in.

Kevin Cassidy 6.5 Not as effective in attacking sense mainly foraging around midfield and obviously not able to keep up with Cavanagh's forward runs

Christy Toye 6.0 Our half forward line this year are not getting enough scores and some time on the bench might get them to re-focus.Seems to have carried last years dull form into 2007.Toye's ability not showing up in games.

Ciaran Bonner 7.0 Never stopped but has been more effective starting in the corner and allowed to roam.

Brian Roper 6.5 Another foraging role and along with Bradley improved our breaking ball stat. but this meant that we really had only two out and out forwards in Dev and Wappa.

Kevin Mc Menamin 6.5 Once again with Dev received good ball in first half but unlike against Mayo it was out on the 40.Both he and Devenney require this ball within 30m of goal as they both can turn and make space for a shot only briefly before being closed down.No capacity to score from long range.

Brendan Devenney 7.0 Guilty of kicking two hurried left foot efforts that barely trundled intp Mc Connels hands.Far too hasty and no composure when kicking.Could see the teams confidence begin to drain with every failed effort on his part.However kept going till end and certainly has hunger back to do well.Less evidence of the trademark whinging as well.

Ryan Bradley 6.0 Given the job of scrapping for breaks and tracking back on Tyrone attacks so ability to do score limited.Should be given start on Sunday on the wing in best position.

Subs: Colm Mc Fadden 6.5 Took point well but contributed patchily in remaining minutes as game became scrappy.

Tommy Donoghue 7.0 Sound and should start ahead of Mc Gee at the moment

Michael Murphy and Michael Hegarty not on long enough to rate.

Karl Lacey,Paul Durcan and Michael Doherty have played with Sligo IT in all of the FBD League with the final against Galway to be played on Sunday.No other panel members are involved with 3rd level teams.

A well deserved two points yesterday against a fairly full strength Mayo side.All 19 players used fought tigerishly and were the hungrier for victory especially in the last 10 minutes with the sides level after our fumbled own goal.Mc Iver's tactically astute substitutions clinched the game with all of our subs making an impact.Conditions were good with only light rain and very little wind.The large crowd (about 4000) saw a game of football largely destroyed by yet another poor performance by Joe Mc Quillan.This so called directive from HQ to refs to clamp down on fouls is causing stoppages for every single infringement with no allowance for letting the game flow much to the annoyance of players and supporters from both teams.
We started well with Devenney prominent from receiving quality early ball inside and one sweeping move the length of the pitch that saw Ryan Bradley narrowly miss.However we lost our way in the last 20 minutes and allowed Mayo to go in at the interval a point ahead helped in no small part by some soft frees.Paddy Mc Conagely replaced Mc Gee at half time and started to pose an attacking threat with some excellent passes into the FF line.We were beginning to dominate although our supremacy was negated by somewhat by our failure to pick up any breaking ball in midfield.After they equalised thru the own goal,Mayo should have had the upper hand but the lads rallied led thru big Neilly battling in midfield.The decisive moments were the introduction of Sweeney for Toye and Mc Fadden for Roper.Colm Anthony moved into the corner with Bradley switching to the right wing.Adie remained in midfield with Cass pushing on to the 40.A free was cooly dispatched by Wappa and along with Devenney thrived off the pinpoint accuracy of the passes delivered by Sweeney.The two closing points by Wappa and Colm Anthony were sheer class both receiving ball on the turn before swinging over left footed points with their backs to goal.

Positives:-  Tactical switches, Devenney's overall contribution, Neil Gallagher's full return, the ferocity of the marking and tackling as exemplified by a MOTM performance by Barry Dunnion, the impact from substitutions

Negatives:- conceding soft goal and failure to win any breaking ball

Paul Durcan 6.5 Had no saves to make but really should have reacted quicker to the incident with Neil Gallagher
Paddy Campbell 7.5 Best game yet in the corner with Mc Iver experimenting with Tommy D at full back.Closed out O Malley threat and made some great diving blocks in first half.
Tommy Donoghue 7.0 Stood up well to challenge of full back duties and can only assume was subbed due to knock.
Karl Lacey 7.0 May have been feeling effects of lot of games in last couple of weeks with county and college but still did enough to limit Mortimer's threat.
Barry Dunnion 8.0 Brilliant display yet again.Should have gone off midway thru second half after getting heavy knock in brave tackle.In fact recovered to score one of his trademark points.Never stopped.
Barry Monaghan 7.5 On hindsight I was overly critical of Barry last week but a player of his calibre is judged on very high standards.All of the half back line attacked when the opportunity arose and was unlucky with a point effort in second half.
Eamonn Mc Gee 6.0 Looked out of sorts from the start and was struggling badly to keep up.Replaced at half time by Mc Conagely.
Kevin Cassidy 7.5 Not to be found wanting with some fine fielding although can feel disappointed that little breaking ball was picked up around him.An absolute concrete horse of a young fella who is beginning to show a confidence and ease in his new midfield role.
Neil Gallagher 7.5 First full match and worried that he would'nt last the pace.Showed up more prominently in last 10 minutes when midfield possession was vital.
Brian Roper 7.0 Used all his experience and in attempting a point off the outside of the boot created the chance for Bradley to pounce for the goal.
Ciaran Bonner 7.5 Kicked fine point into the river end from an acute angle and chased bacxk constantly.Like Dunnion can always be counted on to give his all.
Christy Toye 7.0 Feel he was unlucky to be subbed midway thru second half but a change was required.
Kevin Mc Menamin 7.5 Wappa's stock continues to grow and if quality fast quick ball chest high can be delivered consistently then along with Devenney an effective partnership will develop.Kicked his final free with composure and and his last point from play was a gem.
Brendan Devenney 7.5 Showed greater team ethic than hitherto and was always available and first to every ball.Father time means he no longer always skins his man but is a vital part of Donegal 2007.
Ryan Bradley 7.0 Glad to see him start and followed in Roper's high ball instinctively resulting in his goal.
Subs:
Paddy Nc Conagely 7.5 Showed experience yesterday and firmly staked a claim for a starting berth with a commanding performance
Adrian Sweeney 7.5 Got a double Mayo welcome when introduced and took a while to recover.His kick passing from picking up midfield breaks was exquisite and worth the entry fee alone.This position between midfield and the 40 appeared in the Championship last year and could be a very effective way of utilising Adie's passing ability as the 'impact sub'.
Colm Mc Fadden 7.5 Missed a free with his first kick of the game but made up for it with a beautiful point to end the contest.

Yeah,a great two points to come away from Pairc Ui Rinn with as Cork will definetly take points at home.It was great to see the hardcore support travelling once again in numbers and outshouting the rebels. The team and management appreciated this and gave a round of applause to all in the main stand at the end.As ever the home crowd were knowlegeable and very gracious in defeat.Larry Tompkins concede that we deserved our victory and commented on the fact that some of the Cork players were too easily pushed around in the pysical stakes.Yet again we had to endure an abysmal ref Syl Doyle from Wexford.Within the first 30 seconds you could see that he was going to be busy in stopping the game to scribble in his notebook.Devenney's two yellows were borne of frustration in that the ref repeatedly failed to pull the Cork defence for blatant pushes.Murphy was brewing for trouble throughout the match and deservedly walked whilst Masters was given a straight red for an off the ball dig.In fact Masters had been playing well and their full forward O Connor displayed some great fielding giving Neil Mc Gee trouble.
The positives for us were yet another MOTM display by Cass, Wappa's 1-2 and the lack of panic during the first 20 minutes when we conceded two woeful goals.
The main negatives were the very slow ball into the FF line and failure to close out the game with the two man numerical advantage.
The pitch was in good shape although the dew on the surface made handling tricky. It is imperative that we build on this by beating Mayo next week and looking at maximum points from our last two games against Limerick and Fermanagh should secure at least fourth spot- anything over and above that will be a bonus. Puzzled as to why Sweeney and Bradley were not introduced in last 10 minutes as bench was'nt emptied.

Paul Durcan 5.5 An absolute mare for the big man.Fumbled a high ball in that led to second goal and kick outs poor.Lucky really not to be replaced by Sharkey for second half.Can look back and say that he will never play as bad again.

Thomas Donoghue 7.0 Had his hands full playing against Cork's best line.Moved out to the wing in switch with Eamon Mc Gee and looked more at ease.

Neil Mc Gee 7.0 Marking Cork's best player IMO and did well to curtail him.

Karl Lacey 7.5 Captain for the night and had superb battle with Masters.Only took a short time to get up to match pace and made numerous forays down the line in second half.

Eamon Mc Gee 7.0 Relatively quiet performance but curtailed the threat of O Sullivan when switched to the corner.

Barry Monaghan 6.5 Pulled out of position and ended up marking space for long periods of the first half as the Cork centre half roamed.Still cannot release the ball into the FF line from frees in the half back line.

Barry Dunnion 6.5 As with all the half backs not unduly troubled by O Brien and found himself in scoring positions on acouple of occasions only to lay off to someone in a worse position. Have a go Barry.

Kevin Cassidy 8.0 Rattled big Murphy and stood up to his stupid antics.Drove on and encouraged his teammates especially after the early set backs.Picked up a knock at the end and hopefully is OK.

Rory Kavanagh 7.0 I dont think Rory is enjoying football at the moment as his verve and stamina from last year are not showing.Battled on and did compete in fielding but distribution was poor.In fact there was an abject dearth of long low quick ball into our FF line.

Brian Roper 7.5 Our most effective forward from open play and kicked two fine points with the outside of the boot.Got a great round of applause when subbed late on.

Ciaran Bonner 6.5 A less vibrant and energetic display on Saturday night and may have been feeling the shoulder knock from the Armagh game.

Christy Toye 7.0 Cannot fault the effort but still being dragged away from the 40 into a packed midfield area.

Kevin Mc Menamin 7.5 Took goal chance well after defensive c**k up by Cork and kicked two good frees.In every game has shown that will always win ball pl;ayed in low and fast to him but jury still out on his ability to turn and go past his marker.

Brendan Devenney 7.0 In fairness not given any sort of quality ball and when in possession had the beating of his man for pace.

Michael Doherty 5.5 Never got into match and i think may have touched the ball twice before being subbed at half time.Still should start for Mayo match for frees alone.

Subs:
Colm Anthony 6.5 Ring rusty after long lay off from inter county action but lobbed over point that sealed victory.

Peter Witherow 6.5 Came on for injured Neil Mc Gee and did well.

Michael Hegarty 6.5 No significant impact but should be the creator of openings by harnessing his passing ability like he showed against Down.

Neil Gallagher Season appearance and not on long enough to rate.

We can take Mayo and owe them from the narrow defeat suffered in Ballina a couple of years ago.

The record books will show that we bucked the hoodoo and finally beat Armagh and yes I know they were a 2nd string,reserves,hell some of them were probably playing for the Armagh U16 development squad only last week but a win is a win.Hopefully this can give the team confidence for May 27th.
                                                         I have to say that there were a lot of cocky Armagh supporters leaving Healy Park yesterday safe in their belief that the 'A-Team' will have no bother of disposing of us come the championship.Form during the Mc Kenna Cup can not be equated with what 'should' happen in the Summer.Ask Tyrone as they beat us by 18 points in the Mc Kenna final in 2005 only to lose to a 13 man Donegal team in Clones that Summer.It could be argued that this young Armagh team brought an intensity to the match as they were each fighting for league panel places and it showed in their pressure when we were in possession as there were many turnovers.Some of the pulling and dragging especially of Toye,Hegarty and Kavanagh should have been addressed by Toland,the abysmal ref.
Individual positives were the display of the two Mc Gees,Cass in midfield - a powerhouse performance,Barry Monaghan and Wappa's point tally.
Mc Iver was correct to feel aggrieved by the refs sending off of Cass and an appeal should be lodged as to the reason why he deemed Kevins tackle as a foul let alone a yellow card offence.It was laughable to hear the baying Armagh ones calling for Cass to be sent off for a fair shoulder.The 'crack' could be heard in the stand and I'm sure everyone wishes young Duffy a speedy recovery.Cass had the forward momentum whilst Duffy had just received the ball and was stationary.I dont know the protocol in disciplinary appeals but i hope that Toland can be asked to account for his decision of a second yellow card.In fact it swung the advantage in our favour and it never looked like our slender lead could be matched by fading Armagh attack.Another chance to finally win some silverware awaits on the 18th February and we go down to Pairc Ui Rinn on Saturday night unbeaten.
Cass's suspension and Ciaran Bonner's (shoulder injury) absence will be a big loss.Colm Anthony and big Neilly were in the stand and have'nt featured yet this year due to injury and tonsilitis and it remains to be seen if they will figure in the Cork match.
Still Mc Iver has to be concerned that we could'nt account for that Armagh side with so many first team players on show.

Ciaran Sharkey 7.0 Could not fault display were he was'nt called upon to make a save and kicked fairly accurately.
Paddy Campbell 6.0 Paddy aint a corner back and a strange decision by Mc Iver when he could have given Witherow another run.
Neil Mc Gee 7.5 Played very well and pushed Cass close for MOTM IMO.Sound and strong under the high ball.
Frank Mc Glynn 6.0 Much better suited to wing back and too loose in marking his man.
Tommy Donoghue 7.0 Best game so far,showed plenty of confidence and won plenty of scrappy ball.
Barry Monaghan 7.0 Improving with each game and phenomenal strength in breaking the tackles.
Eamonn Mc Gee 7.0 Along with his brother the pick of our defenders.
Joe Friel 7.0 Found it puzzling when subbed by Roper.Best game in county jersey so far.
Kevin Cassidy 8.0 Immense throughout and led by example.Beginning to bed into midfield position.
Christy Toye 7.0 Made some valuable runs that eventually drew belated frees in second half but needs to maintain a consistency of play throughout.
Michael Hegarty 7.0 Captain for the day and like Toye and Kavanagh found it difficult to escape the pulling and dragging fest on the '40'
Rory Kavanagh 6.5 Does not look fit and only began to show when reduced to 14 men.
Kevin Mc Menamin 7.5 Wappa's tally of 4 points made him our best forward and should have been given more of the frre taking duties with the wind advantage in the second half.All told 5 different players tried their luck at frees.
Brendan Devenney 6.5 In fairness the quality of ball was not of the same standard as last week.Failed to execute some easy frees but made one incisive run that set up Roper for a goal chance that ended up going over for a point.
Ciaran Bonner 7.0 Came off injured following awkward fall at start.looked lively and was missed for rest of match as orthodox 3 man FF line was employed when Thompson came on.

Subs:
Barry Dunnion 7.0 In for second half and injected much needed attacking option with Donoghue going back into corner.
Brian Roper 6.5 Chasing shadows for a while but popped up for a point.
Leon Thompson 6.0 Like Devenney,not able to make much headway and when he did break free shot weakly into the keepers hands from 20m.
Adrian Sweeney 7.0 Able to hold up ball when needed but obviously has'nt the pace to do any real damage these days.Impact sub season once more.
Ryan Bradley Not on long enough to rate.

Healy Park is a fine set up and the PA system is the standard that every other county ground should aspire to. The main announcer had a voice similar to Benedict Kiely,clear and sonorous.For all those of an older generation that was the guy who did many of narrations on the RTE series 'Hands'. I believe he was/is one of Omagh's most renowned sons.

A very promising performance by a mixture of new and old in the green and gold yesterday at a windless Park in Ballyshannon.There were county debuts for Paddy mc Conagely and Brendan Mc Dyre.The game also saw season starts for Ciaran Bonner,Michael Hegarty,Tommy Donoghue,brendan Devenney and Adrian Sweeney.The first half display was sharp and incisive with some fine points by Dev and thompson.indeed the game could have been out of sight for Down had Donegal taken more than their two goal chances.The off the ball running and quick early ball into our FF line tore the Down defence ragged at times.
Dev had one of those early season stormers that in previous years has flattered to deceive and along with Hegarty kicked some accuirate passes throughout.We led by 6 points at half time.Typically,a Donegal charachteristic of taking the foot off the pedal appeared for the first 20 minutes of the second half allowing Down to come within two points of us.This was thru the free taking of Barry Doran at roughly the same position and distance (40m) every time.It seemed that every time a Down lad fell to earth in that area of the field a free was rewarded.some of the frees were fairly soft and slightly soured the ref Derry's Aidan Mc Alynn's performace in the eyes of the Donegal support.Speaking of support there were maybe a dozen Mourne people all told.
Full marks to Aodh Ruadh ground staff for getting the pitch playable and hopefully by the time the Dubs arrive in the league they'll have sorted out how to work the tape machine for the national anthem.

Positives were the early ball into a dynamic FF line,Devenney's display and Michael Hegarty's passing

Negatives Not putting the nail in the Down coffin after half time

Michael Boyle 7.0 Good accurate kick outs although conceded one point when ball popped over from his outstretched hands.

Barry Dunnion 7.0 Had it tough man marking a speedy corner forward and is much more at home on the wing.Kept at it and intercepted on numerous occasions.

Paddy Campbell 6.0 Poor game and suffered early knock that did'nt help.Only caight one clean ball against a big awkward FF and failed to get out in front.

Paddy Mc Conagely 6.5 Shaky enough start but became more confident as game progressed.Guilty of overcarrying at times but made a couple of forays in second half.

Tommy Donoghue 7.0 Solid and did the covering back well with lots of possession

Barry Monaghan 7.5 Started at centre half before switching to midfield at half time.Actually played better in midfield whilst Cass switched back.is exceptionally strong in breaking the tackle and showed his experience.

Frank Mc Glynn 7.5 We have a surfeit of excellent half backs and the Glenfin man was the pick of the defense.

Kevin Cassidy 7.0 Robust but still seems to be more comfortable at half back.Struggled to gain clean possession but always willing himself on the line in a congested miodfield.

Ciaran Bonner 7.5 Picked up from last year with an all action display and ran Devenney close for MOTM

Brendan Mc Dyre 5.5 Game passed the young Glenties man by but hopefully can improve.

Michael Hegarty 7.5 This is how he should play on a consistent basis.easily our best firward in delivering quality ball into the FF line.

Brian Roper 6.5 Captain for the day but not as energetic as previous games.Still contributed in winning ball and doing the basics well

Brendan Devenney 8.5 Star performance from the off and should have ended with 1-9 however 6 points and a penalty earned was a great return.

Adrian Sweeney 7.0 Again another sharp performance.Still can receive the ball in tight situations and lay off to oncoming forwards.Executed penalty as per but still guilty of missing easy free from the hands.

Leon Thompson 7.5 Ended great move in first half with clinical goal.seems to have early understanding with Dev.Could have had ahatrick of goals but for the keeper and last ditch defending.

Subs:
Rory Kavanagh 6.0 Looked disinterested and off the pace.Fouled close in when about to pull the trigger to earn a pointed free.

Christy Toye 7.0 Much livlier than last week and more at home on the wing.Kicked point to end game as contest.

Kevin Mc Menamin 6.5 Really needs to marry some pace to his undoubted skill to have a chance of breaking into 15 for league.

Joe Friel 6.0 Did,nt add much to midfield sector and really needs to up the ante if he's to secure a league place.

Ryan Bradley 7.0 Tackled well and harried constantly for the short time he was on and another fine point with the left foot.A young footballer with a point to prove.

A reasonable sized crowd saw Donegal hang on to win by a point against a game Antrim side who played an hour with 14 men when Higgins was sent off for two consecutive personal fouls on Martin Mc Elhinney.For long periods any late arrivals to Casement would find it hard to believe that we had the numerical advantage.we were sluggish and disinterested throughout and only showed some impetus when Antrim levelled again with 15 minutes to go.The game saw a debut for Colm Mc Carron at corner back with season starts for Michael Boyle and Noel Hegarty.Kevin Cassidy partnered Joe Friel in midfield and Eamon Mc Gee moved to centre half.

Michael Boyle 7.0 Not troubled with any shots apart from a goalmouth scramble at the end and tried to kick to Cass at every opportunity.

Peter Witherow 6.5 Played his second full game and did well to keep Close from racking up scores that his possession and open play looked like doing.

Paddy Campbell 6.5 Guilty of getting caught in possession early on but steady presence for newcomers but did not look too comfortable with the roving tactics of the Antrim FF line.

Colm Mc Carron 6.0 Booked in first half and switched with witherow.Looks strong enough for this level and should get another chance against Down.

Barry Dunnion 6.5 Used as spare man but failed to reach his customary impact.

Eamon Mc Gee 6.5 Released ball into attack just a little quicker yesterday but not a threat in creative sense.

Noel Hegarty 6.0 Poor enough but lasted until being replaced by Christ Toye at end.

Joe Friel 6.0 Played full game but was second best against a robust Antrim midfield.

Kevin Cassidy 7.5 Urged on team and competed well,kicked one wide when hard work in making space was achieved.At this early juncture is favourite IMO for Gallagher partnership.

Ryan Bradley 7.0 Worked very hard in covering back.Could not fault his effort and kicked two points off his left foot.Mc Iver is obviously giving him every oppotunity this year.

Johnny Mc Loone 6.0 Failed to make any impact and was replaced by Brian Roper

Michael Murphy 6.5 Contributed one free and a point from play but kicked 3 easy frees wide.

Kevin Mc Menamin 7.0 Again showed well always first to ball but cannot seem to get by the defender instead opting to lay off.Does not seem to have the physical power to go for points in excess of 30m.

Benny Byrne 6.5 More effective as target man this week and laid off nicely for the last point by Thompson.Still not knocking at Mc Iver's door with the solution to our FF woes.

Martin Mc Elhinney 7.0 Livliest and most direct forward,switched to the 40 for last quarter.

Subs:
Neil Mc Gee 6.5 Steady enough and will improve - repaced Mc Carron at half time.
Brian Roper 7.0 Kicked a trademark point to steady the ship and did the basics well.
Frank Mc Glynn 6.0 Replaced Hegarty and missed easy point chance from 30m towards end.
Leon Thompson 6.5 Kicked final point and looked sharp and first to every ball.
Christy Toye Not on long enough to rate

Positives - Martin Mc Elhinney and Cass in midfield.
Negatives - Inability to make use of extra man

A very wet day,a heavy and in places waterlogged pitch saw the opening game in Donegal's Mc Kenna Cup campaign of 2007.For the largest crowd to watch University opposition since the new look competition started 3 years ago - this New Years football was a damp squib.A moderate bunch of U-14's would have served up better fottball when compared to this.
We won by two points and eventually struggled to shake off a student side that was fit,organised and who played the better football in the opening quarter.In fact they were 1-1 up after 20 minutes before Donegal woke half comatose to level before half time.
There were 7 debutants (2 defenders,1 midfielder and 4 forwards) with the only experienced line of half backs,Monaghan,Dunnion and Eamon Mc Gee.Sweeney and Toye although named did,nt start and along with Devenney were'nt even on the bench.They were replaced by Rory K and Denis Boyle.
Yet again the endemic failing that is all Donegal football over the last 10 years appeared on cue i.e. the shapeless formation that develops when the team is put under pressure with the half forwards funnelling back into midfield resulting in no outlet for us when we do regain possession.Mc Iver has a year of stewardship and should have this major problem sorted by now.
A vast improvement will be needed to come out of Casement with both points.

Positives Brian Roper,Wappa Mc Menamin and Michael Murphy

Ciaran Sharkey 6.0 Batted out high ball to FF who fisted to net in first 15 minutes.Not physically imposing but pulled off a double save late in first half to somewhat redeem his earlier error.

Peter Witherow 6.0 Started shakily but cleared up a lot of ball as game wore on.Still fairly light for a corner back.

Paddy Campbell 6.5 Slow at outset giving time and space to the FF but lorded the full back line in second half.

Frank Mc Glynn 6.5 Better on the wing but can still do a job in the corner however unlikely this season to snatch Karlo's or Neil Mc Gee's positions.

Eamon Mc Gee 6.5 Always can appear a little nonvhalant as if half distracted but is deceptively strong and afew more games possibly at centre back to showcase his passing ability would be interesting

Barry Monaghan 6.0 solid but cannot take a quick free to save his life and too often gets caught faffing around when a 'driver her down the field' option is required.

Barry Dunnion 6.5 Brave as the proverbial and should improve from his great displays last season.Missed a couple of point chance in both halves.

Joe Friel 6.5 Fetched a couple of good ones and is a skilled footballer but needs to bulk up to play with the big boys in the league.Should be played throughout the remaining Mc Kenna Cup games to see if he can be a real alternnative to Boyler.

Rory Kavanagh 6.0 Caught soloing thru midfield on too many occasions when the quick long ball into the FF line was asked for.

Ryan Bradley 6.0 Did,nt do himself any favours and after a promising debut season in 2005 only featured once last year.Needs to get back to that aggressive straight line running he showed against Mayo in the league.However needs to be given every chance.

Brian Roper 8.0 MOTM and kicked final point to largest cheer of the day.The oldest player on the pitch and by my reckoning must be close to Matt Gallaghers all time appearance record of 125.Played with his customary spirit and displayed a sharpness and turn of speed that turned back the clock for the Rock of Corker.Sliced thru the heart of the UUJ defence laying off unselfishly for the goal.

Johnny Mc Loone 6.0 Kicked too many balls weakly into the keepers hands but fired home the goal well.

Kevin Mc Menamin 7.5 Small,quick and skill redolent of the wee man and showed constanmtly for ball thruout the game.Kicked 3 points and could possibly cause a corner back trouble on a harder sod.Promising and confident debut.

Benny Byrne 6.0 Desperately looking for a FF and resembles Paddy Mc Nulty in style.Needs to improve dramitically to retain a panel place for the league.

Denis Boyle 6.0 Again one that let the game slip by and needs to be given another chance.

Subs: Kevin Cassidy 6.5 Fielded well but was confused as to role as game descended into a schoolyard kickaround in the closing minutes.

Michael Murphy 7.0 Potential there to be a colossal footballer for Donegal but caution needs to be exercised in that he is still a minor and he is used sparingly in the Senior set up for now.Did not look phased and kicked a fine 45.

Neil Mc Gee and Michael Mc Elhinney not on long enough to rate

Referee Martin Higgins was as farcical as ever and did'nt have the wit to allow for the conditions.His interpretation of the pick up off the ground was infuriating.

Welcome to our small cohort of posters.In relation to Eunans captain and having watched him in the county final I personally would'nt let him within an asses roar of the panel as he has consistently failed at county level over the years.Too slow,too awkward and a yella streak to boot.I'm glad the captaincy was taken off Toye as it clearly affected his form this year and he gave no leadership at all.The captain has to be vocal and lead by example.I can see big Neilly doing the latter but he strikes me as fairly quiet onfield and if as you say he's fond of the lemonade and like Toye has been given responsibility solely to dissuade him from the gargle then mc Ivor has repeated his mistake again.Barry Monaghan is the obvious choice or from left field possibly devenney as it might curb his propensity to go it alone on the pitch and contribute to play more as a team player.Hoping that Dermot Langan and David Walsh impress in the trials from our own club and that the Mc Kenna Cup throws up a midfielder maybe Sweeney from Fanad could surprise us - lose some weight and find some pace.
This Mc Iver's second year is the crunch year.I'd say most people will be happy with a top four place in Division 1A and winning Ulster - could nearly settle for beating Armagh in Mc Cumhaill.
I think the Cassidy affair was a mess orchestrated by poor communication between management,County Board and local media.

Yeah J70 it's gonna take at least a week to get back to some kinda equilibrium but what a journey to go thru in the depths of Winter.For all concerned it was like Italia 90 and September 92 times 10!!!.I drove up from Waterford today and was never as nervous before a match.Close defeats are such absolute sickeners.

Naomh Brid 0-9 Greencastle 1-7

Never been so angry and depressed after a defeat like this.No one can have any gripes if the better team triumphs but the least we merited today was a draw.By half time we knew it probably was'nt going to be our day with our frees not going over and conceding a sickener of a goal midway thru.A miscued free that somehow managed to trundle between two of our full back line and John Gallagher in goal.The opposition had started the better and we were second to most ball.Michael gallagher started the same line up as the semi final which was to cost us as dermot Curristan and possibly Stephen Walls should have started.
We went in four points down at half time with the wind advantage against us.
However after the goal with the fantastic vocal support by what seemed most of Drumholme we began to slowly peg back the deficit.But for some wrong options by our full forward line we should have equalised.greencastle were holding on for all of the second half with their only scores coming from frees.
Best for us was Fermot Currisatn,Sean Gormley,John Paul Langan,the Walshes,Paul Mc Grory and Owen Gorman. The average age of that team is 21 so next years aim must be promotion as progression from this year is paramount.The pain of a narrow defeat for your county pails by comparison with the void of despair when your club are edged out.
Good luck to Greencastle

MON NAOMH BRID

Well we played very well today to beat the competition favourites by 9 points.We won both halves and the turning points were Dermot Langan's goal,John 'Lefra' Gallaghers point blank save and a point by David Walsh follwing a sweeping move up the stand side in the second half.Late changes were enforced due to injuries picked up against Coa with Dermot Curristan making way for Pauric Rooney at full back and Ronan Gallagher starting for young John Mc Nulty.An early fisted goal following a free set us on our way early on and when the captain rattled the net midway thru the first half it looked like we might have enough of  gap going in at half time to defend against a strong wind in the second.All played well with special mention to the Walshes,John Paul Langan,Pauric Mc Daids freetaking and Paul Mc Grory and Dermot Langan in midfield.Owen Gorman played at his impish best and John Gallagher was sound in goals.The full back line steadied up as the game wore on and if we turn in a performance like that in the final well it'll take a helluva team to beat us.This is all in the context of a club from two small rural villages with a total club membership of less than 150.The support in Breffni was magnificent and we'll have the same again and more in the final.

Up Ballintra,Up Laghey,Up Drumholme and Mon Naomh Brid!