Donegal defeat dismal Derry

Donegal cruised through to the Ulster semi-final with a comprehensive victory over Derry in Ballybofey, on Saturday. McGuinness’ charges dominated all over the field, and posted an impressive tally of 2-13. Derry were terrible, however ,Donegal can only beat what’s in front of them and they did so with ease.

Derry’s performance reminded me of Donegal’s implosion in Crossmaglen two years ago in the last game of John Joe Doherty’s tenure. That day Donegal were unfit, devoid of a game plan and under the guidance of a limited, old school manager. I’ll certainly never forget the sight of McFadden and co laughing on the bench as Armagh slaughtered us. That day we were humiliated, in a similar manner, to which Derry were on Saturday.

There were stories circulating in the lead-up to Saturday's game about poor attendance at Derry training sessions, yet it was still remarkable to see how far behind they were in the fitness stakes, in comparison with Donegal. They lacked sharpness and tired very early. I couldn’t understand their naivety in playing against Donegal’s blanket defence. Long hopeful balls into Paddy Bradley were always going to be easily mopped up by Donegal, and he was completely suffocated out of the game. The Derry subs didn’t seem too bothered either, laughing as their chances of collecting an Ulster medal drifted further and further away.

John Brennan was lauded in the press last year for his attitude towards the game. He didn’t buy into the need for defensive strategies and played the game in the traditional way. He mentioned a challenge game against Sligo, in which there was a big black box sitting on the sideline. All the Sligo players were connected to heart monitors, and their information was being transferred back to the big black box. Brennan remarked that he thought it was a barbecue, and that he was going to get a burger. Derry didn’t need all this fancy equipment, they were just going out to play the game.

A refreshing outlook in the midst of warm weather training camps and early morning gym sessions, was the general consensus among the GAA correspondents. But this attitude should not be praised. Brennan and Derry are living in the dark ages, in the same way to which Donegal were before McGuinness took control. You can’t just go out to play the game anymore. Everything has to be prepared meticulously. Strategies have to be devised and new training regimes have to be adhered to. Anything that can be done to give the team that extra edge, should be done. Donegal have changed and evolved, while Derry have found themselves going backwards.

Donegal’s defensive system was superb again. No Derry player was allowed time or space in the scoring area, and the tackling was ferocious. It was also interesting to see a new attacking dimension to our play. A three man full-forward line was played almost the whole game, while the speed of that counter-attack was so much faster than last year.

The second goal was the score of the game, and it emphasised both the strong, stubborn defensive system, and the new offensive strategy. Frank McGlynn, Eamon McGee and David Walsh ripped the ball away from Michael Friel, and the speed of the counter attack was frightening. McBrearty superbly ran at the defence and had three players in support, but correctly chose to pass to McFadden and he was never going to pass up the opportunity to bury it to the net.

It was interesting that we saw a lot of joy down the left-hand side of the pitch. Last year, we became accustomed to seeing Anthony Thompson, Mark McHugh and Karl Lacey raid down the right flank, yet the left side was never utilised in the same manner.  On Saturday, the link up play between Frank McGlynn and David Walsh was fantastic, and their opponents had no way of stopping them. McGlynn was an unsung hero in the tem last year, and with two impressive performances under his belt already this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see an All-Star award head to Glenfin this year.

I was impressed with Paddy McBrearty again and he has developed a lot from his debut season. He now poses a far bigger threat to the opposition. His ball-winning skills are vital and he was out in front of his marker all day. He played an integral role in both goals and almost added another goal of his own. With a ball winner inside in the Full-forward line, Murphy can be released to play out the field, where he can link the defence with the attack.

Ryan Bradley had a good outing. He had been criticised in recent weeks, but his physicality around the middle of the field is a very important aspect of Donegal’s play. In the absence of Rory Kavanagh he really lifted his game and he combined well with Neil Gallagher throughout the 70 minutes. His tackling has improved significantly and he doesn’t seem to give away clumsy frees anymore. It was also good to see Neil McGee back to his old form in defence, and he’ll need another big performance against Tyrone.

The big worry coming out of the game is that we haven’t had a stern test before we play the Red Hands. They had a tough game against Armagh and had to dig deep to find the win. On the other hand, we’ve strolled through our two games without ever really being tested. Tyrone won’t be lacking in fitness or match sharpness, and Mickey Harte certainly will have a game plan devised to try and break down Donegal.