Donegal v Dublin AISF 31st Aug 2014

[J70]

One other thing - I hope today's game puts to bed the common consensus that Donegal's success has come only because they never allow themselves to get behind. Five points down after 20 minutes, Flynn and Connolly knocking them over from all angles and distances, Donegal being run ragged by the perennial champions elect...

What was it, a thirteen point turn around fifteen or twenty minutes of football?

[Dinny Breen]

Dublin's forwards are not clinical need to create lots of opportunities to score so I must commend Donegal on their composure after the opening 15mins when it looked Dublin couldn't miss, they simply didn't panic and worked their way into the game. The contrast to Dublin in the last 15 was stark when they completely lost their composure  instead of lads like MDMA Brogan and McMenimen providing situational leadership they just hit bad wide after bad wide, to me Dublin were a team not prepared to go to the end mentally.

Indeed, a bit like the Kildare lads 

Don't know why you brought Kildare into it, in one sense we are similar but I would have expected guys with Celtic Crosses to step up to the plate they didn't.

[INDIANA]

Dublin's forwards are not clinical need to create lots of opportunities to score so I must commend Donegal on their composure after the opening 15mins when it looked Dublin couldn't miss, they simply didn't panic and worked their way into the game. The contrast to Dublin in the last 15 was stark when they completely lost their composure  instead of lads like MDMA Brogan and McMenimen providing situational leadership they just hit bad wide after bad wide, to me Dublin were a team not prepared to go to the end mentally.

Indeed, a bit like the Kildare lads 

Got to be the ultimate in irony. Our half forwards got 0-10 between them. Not bad for forwards with no composure.

A tactical malfunction ensured our forwards had to go for goals in the latter stages when most of those wides occured.

i see Ewan Mc Kenna spouting more of his anti-Dubs bile on twitter- Classy guy is our Ewan. One lad who'd you'd be happy to see out of work and redundant.

Sure he wrote Kenny Egan's autobiography, how anti-Dub can he be?

Pondweed is the only term you could use to describe him. Most journalists write good and bad things about us.

His is just relentless bile.

[J70]

Well done Donegal – yours was a devastating second-half display and a well-deserved victory. We owned the first twenty minutes and if any of our three goal chances had gone in the story might have been different, but it was not to be.

It's not a good feeling for a Dubs supporter tonight and it will take us a few days to get over this, but we've had nights like this before and we'll rise again. This Dublin squad has given us many great days over the past three or four years and hopefully we'll have a few more. They are a brilliant bunch of lads and they owe the supporters nothing. Well done lads.

To the Donegal supporters – enjoy the next few weeks. Your team did you proud.

Well said.

[Dinny Breen]

Dublin's forwards are not clinical need to create lots of opportunities to score so I must commend Donegal on their composure after the opening 15mins when it looked Dublin couldn't miss, they simply didn't panic and worked their way into the game. The contrast to Dublin in the last 15 was stark when they completely lost their composure  instead of lads like MDMA Brogan and McMenimen providing situational leadership they just hit bad wide after bad wide, to me Dublin were a team not prepared to go to the end mentally.

Indeed, a bit like the Kildare lads 

Got to be the ultimate in irony. Our half forwards got 0-10 between them. Not bad for forwards with no composure.

A tactical malfunction ensured our forwards had to go for goals in the latter stages when most of those wides occured.

i see Ewan Mc Kenna spouting more of his anti-Dubs bile on twitter- Classy guy is our Ewan. One lad who'd you'd be happy to see out of work and redundant.

Good grief how many did they get in the last 15 or did I just imagine all those wides in a row.

[INDIANA]

One other thing - I hope today's game puts to bed the common consensus that Donegal's success has come only because they never allow themselves to get behind. Five points down after 20 minutes, Flynn and Connolly knocking them over from all angles and distances, Donegal being run ragged by the perennial champions elect...

What was it, a thirteen point turn around fifteen or twenty minutes of football?

I'll put it to you like this. kerry will never will be as naive tactically today as we were.

We let you off the hook there. However I've no gripes over the 75 mins. the better team won. But if O Gara or conolly finish those chances I don' think you're coming back

[Syferus]

Dublin's forwards are not clinical need to create lots of opportunities to score so I must commend Donegal on their composure after the opening 15mins when it looked Dublin couldn't miss, they simply didn't panic and worked their way into the game. The contrast to Dublin in the last 15 was stark when they completely lost their composure  instead of lads like MDMA Brogan and McMenimen providing situational leadership they just hit bad wide after bad wide, to me Dublin were a team not prepared to go to the end mentally.

Indeed, a bit like the Kildare lads 

Got to be the ultimate in irony. Our half forwards got 0-10 between them. Not bad for forwards with no composure.

A tactical malfunction ensured our forwards had to go for goals in the latter stages when most of those wides occured.

i see Ewan Mc Kenna spouting more of his anti-Dubs bile on twitter- Classy guy is our Ewan. One lad who'd you'd be happy to see out of work and redundant.

Sure he wrote Kenny Egan's autobiography, how anti-Dub can he be?

Pondweed is the only term you could use to describe him. Most journalists write good and bad things about us.

His is just relentless bile.

I can't recall reading anything of his. Does seem to be going a bit Joe Broly on the jokes on Twitter right now.

Ballagh GAA follow him. And Club Rossie..

[INDIANA]

Dublin's forwards are not clinical need to create lots of opportunities to score so I must commend Donegal on their composure after the opening 15mins when it looked Dublin couldn't miss, they simply didn't panic and worked their way into the game. The contrast to Dublin in the last 15 was stark when they completely lost their composure  instead of lads like MDMA Brogan and McMenimen providing situational leadership they just hit bad wide after bad wide, to me Dublin were a team not prepared to go to the end mentally.

Indeed, a bit like the Kildare lads 

Got to be the ultimate in irony. Our half forwards got 0-10 between them. Not bad for forwards with no composure.

A tactical malfunction ensured our forwards had to go for goals in the latter stages when most of those wides occured.

i see Ewan Mc Kenna spouting more of his anti-Dubs bile on twitter- Classy guy is our Ewan. One lad who'd you'd be happy to see out of work and redundant.

Good grief how many did they get in the last 15 or did I just imagine all those wides in a row.

Donegal dropped 14 off at the back in the last 10 minutes. We were 7-8 points down- we needed at least one goal. They just matched us point for point in the last 15.

Some of the misses were very poor but we only had one attacking plan today. Which was quick handpassing around the diamond to get our long range shooters in position. Which worked well when ahead. I can't understand why we just didn't win playing ugly when we got ahead. But we only have one way of playing at the moment.

We have the skill and athleticism to play any game plan but we didn't have any other plan today. Its hard when you get beaten at midfield badly. We've been bailing water there for a few years now and it came home today. Gavin can't do anything about that- our system is not producing midfielders for whatever reason.

[Dinny Breen]

These weren't long range misses though ffs Brogan missed an easy free of his right and MDMA  blazed over from in front on the post 20m. Add in Cluxton's poor execution of 45s and Dublin to me were not right mentally. Call it complacency or over confidence but they were not in the same zone as Donegal.

[INDIANA]

These weren't long range misses though ffs Brogan missed an easy free of his right and MDMA  blazed over from in front on the post 20m. Add in Cluxton's poor execution of 45s and Dublin to me were not right mentally. Call it complacency or over confidence but they were not in the same zone as Donegal.

There was no complacency involved. Try going back to back sometime. You can't beat hunger on a football pitch.

Nobody seems to be able to do it. Donegal didn't do too well last year as I recall.

[J70]

One other thing - I hope today's game puts to bed the common consensus that Donegal's success has come only because they never allow themselves to get behind. Five points down after 20 minutes, Flynn and Connolly knocking them over from all angles and distances, Donegal being run ragged by the perennial champions elect...

What was it, a thirteen point turn around fifteen or twenty minutes of football?

I'll put it to you like this. kerry will never will be as naive tactically today as we were.

We let you off the hook there. However I've no gripes over the 75 mins. the better team won. But if O Gara or conolly finish those chances I don' think you're coming back

Doesn't take away from my point though. It has consistently been a issue people used to question this Donegal team, despite the fact that they've generally answered the question of coming from behind when its been asked of them. They came back from a five point deficit against Tyrone in 2011, they trailed Kildare by three or four points a couple of times in 2011, and now today they reeled in a five point Dublin lead to lead by eight themselves (think Derry were three or four points up on us too this year, although in retrospect there was a little too much hype afforded them after the league). True, they could not come back against Monaghan and Mayo last year, but that was an exhausted side carrying injuries to key players.

[seafoid]

It might end up like the last decade with 2 teams sharing the all Irelands for an extended period.  The Dubs will be back. But not back to back. Donegal are a class outfit.

[north down]

Well done Donegal - the steam roller got steam-rolled today

[thebuzz]

One other thing - I hope today's game puts to bed the common consensus that Donegal's success has come only because they never allow themselves to get behind. Five points down after 20 minutes, Flynn and Connolly knocking them over from all angles and distances, Donegal being run ragged by the perennial champions elect...

What was it, a thirteen point turn around fifteen or twenty minutes of football?

I'll put it to you like this. kerry will never will be as naive tactically today as we were.

We let you off the hook there. However I've no gripes over the 75 mins. the better team won. But if O Gara or conolly finish those chances I don' think you're coming back

Small word with a big meaning. If Mayo had scored their last free in normal time they would have beat Kerry and it would have been a Donegal - Mayo final.

[J70]

One thing though Indiana... if I remember correctly you've constantly extolled the tactics Dublin employ under Jim Gavin, praising his belief in going man for man and letting the chips fall where they may, with the means being just as important as the ends. Today it didn't work. Are you suggesting that Dublin should have retreated a bit with their five point lead?