Rory Gallagher believes the drab Croke Park atmosphere contributed to the lack of bite in Donegal's defeat to Cork.

Just 20,013 people filed through the turnstiles for yesterday's Allianz Football League semi-final double-header, with the majority of those only arriving for the second game between Dublin and Monaghan.

"It's difficult playing in Croke Park with so few there. It was definitely a little bit soft," the Donegal manager said.

"Once we qualified out of the section, we were coming here to win the game. We're different to Cork because I don't think they're out (in the championship) until June 14. Our guys' legs weren't fresh coming into today and I think that had a toll on us."

Despite the defeat and seeing his normally miserly defence ship four goals, Gallagher took positives from what was Donegal's last competitive outing before they face Tyrone in the Ulster SFC preliminary round on May 17.

"One of the main aims was to get Colm (McFadden) back out on the pitch again for a start and get Anthony Thompson in and give Eoin McHugh and Michael Boyle a start," he explained.

"We thought they fitted in pretty well. We're really pleased with where we're at in terms of the fitness within the squad with no real serious injuries at all. Neil Gallagher didn't play today, but he could have played no problem.

"Other than that, we have no worries. We'd expect Neil back in collective training on Tuesday night and we have a full squad."

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