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This talk of winning Ulster hurting us is nonsense in my view. We had two weeks. Jim said they prepared and trained well. We were just a bit off the pitch of it in too many areas against a serious team yesterday. And even then we had the chances to win it and were in a good position with 8 minutes to go. I wouldn't trade the Ulster title for the world. There are no guarantees in life. Who's to say Patton wouldn't have rolled the ankle badly in training, and Mulreany got injured in a club game during a 4 week break if we'd lost earlier on? The 7 week break didn't have Derry ready to steamroll Armagh. Lots of hindsight punditry. Ulster Final 2025 was a magical day and a game I'll talk about til the day I die. CCFabu (Donegal) - Posts: 186 - 25/05/2025 12:28:17 2612336 Link
I still expect Donegal to snake the 3rd spot over Cavan, but who knows? maroondiesel (Mayo) - Posts: 1230 - 25/05/2025 12:29:25 2612337 Link
Replying To Farneyblueandwhite: "No not really it's just that donegal though because they were at home and shouting and roaring that the free wouldn't be given it was a free all day long and mcnally should have given a free to Stefan Campbell as well in the ulster final as his right leg was swiped from under him" What free are you talking about with Stafan Campbell. Was it last year? Ulsterchamps_32 (Donegal) - Posts: 833 - 25/05/2025 12:29:26 2612338 Link
You always get a feeling before a Tyrone match that it can go any way. Form between Donegal and Armagh was almost identical...Armagh beat them with the last kick of the game. Couple that with a month off and recalibration of priorities and you find a Tyrone team who were fresh and focused and who came to Ballybofey with intention, belief and hunger. Hats off to them, they deservedly won. There were some positives in our performance...Michael Langan has turned into an exceptional mid fielder. We battled our way back into the game, even though we were 5 points down early in the 2nd half and went ahead by 2. Unfortunately, we came up short on the day and have to look at the Cavan game now as a massive potential banana skin as they went to Castlebar and beat Mayo. They are more than capable of at least one more big result this year. I don't want to look further down the road than the Cavan game, as those of us who have followed donegal for many years, knows where this sort of attitude leads to. At the same time, you have to make the point that unless we have 2 squads, the ability to compete in the all Ireland season straight after the ulster championship isn't really possible...So our championship aspirations have to be moderated by this fact. Donegalman (None) - Posts: 3847 - 25/05/2025 12:35:22 2612341 Link
Replying To gunman: "Poor decision not to bring in Jamie Brennan and Niall O'Donnell .Maybe NOD has an injury but Brennan was warming up all along.He always plays well against Tyrone and was man of the match against them in Letterkenny.They also brought in an injured player which was surprising given that their policy all along was not to risk players.Gallen didn't perform yesterday at all but was left on this time.Management have questioned the teams performance but maybe they might want to look at themselves as well.Daire always seems to be the first man hooked.He lost a few balls ok but that is because he is always trying to penetrate and make things happen not taking the easy option." I don't know whether you can call it a poor decision on substitutes but you at least have to question yourself. Daire obaoill did have some poor turnovers and I get the substitution in the obvious sense. Are they though considering donegal have the wind to aid with two pointers and daire is excellent at kicking two pointers into the river finn end. It's kind of clear with Mcguinness you have to earn his trust and when gained it almost to a fault. I think brennan lost his trust in the Ulster final as did aaron doherty. He was very slow to take mcgonagle off eventhougu he was carrying his leg for quite a while and shows what he thinks of him. Likewise he trusts mogan with a nick more than other fit players. With all that said there will a few players who will have to play next week and they'll be given a chance to win his trust back. Ulsterchamps_32 (Donegal) - Posts: 833 - 25/05/2025 12:47:18 2612349 Link
There is no need for panic stations. Yes, it has made things more awkward. But we're well capable of going to Breffni and beating Cavan. Mayo wont be easy either but we can't have it both ways. What I mean by that is, I think most Donegal supporters would have us up as contenders. So it's time to prove that. It's not gonna be easy, but sure aspiring to do great things never is. Keep the faith! Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9779 - 25/05/2025 12:56:25 2612354 Link
Replying To Tirchonaill1: "Poor performance overall, losing Patton was critical, we are relying too much on Michael again, too many passengers there last night, winning the Ulster Championship has cost us, Tyrone were well rested and ready. Ref done us no favours but we lost that game through our own mistakes and performance levels. We had them when we went 2 points up and the crowd were lifted but from that on we lost our way, felt sorry for the lads walking off they put so much into it and they know themselves they didn't play like they can, Murphy Langan and a few others carried us. Tyrone didn't even play that well either I thought but did enough to get the win, there's more in them too, they have a good chance of topping the group now. The conditions like I said before had a big influence on the quality of game but they were the same for both teams. The hot air being blown at Donegal will stop now, back down to earth and a tough trip to Breffni carrying injuries and heavy legs, it will be no easy task to get the win, Cavan's tails are up after beating Mayo, time to get behind the boys now and pray Patton is fit to play." Ref? Thought you had more sense than that. Saynothing (Tyrone) - Posts: 2305 - 25/05/2025 13:27:31 2612367 Link
Replying To Saynothing: "Ref? Thought you had more sense than that." Ah I suppose you're right, clutching at straws I know blaming the ref! them calls even out. Ref didn't lose us the game. Tirchonaill1 (Donegal) - Posts: 3209 - 25/05/2025 13:53:02 2612371 Link
Replying To Saynothing: "Ref? Thought you had more sense than that." Ref wasn't great and thought we should have had a free for one of the late turnovers when a Donegal player ended up on floor. But we beat ourselves and Tyrone are within 1-2 points with rest of teams in country and capable of winning it all with the right wind. Not sour grapes as we did it against Armagh albeit we didn't do it as well in extra time but these keep ball running down the clock could do with a tweak or two by Jim Gavin and FRC. It's very very hard to turnover in that scenario at the end of a game and not great viewing imo from a neutral. A team leading in final five minutes should not be able to pass ball back into their own half to play keep ball. If they couldn't go past half way, it would make them more inclined to attack and give other side better chance of pressing and give them opportunities for turnovers. Much much harder to press than in soccer in these scenarios and i guarantee it will be a hallmark of the summer. shaggykev (Donegal) - Posts: 341 - 25/05/2025 14:21:45 2612382 Link
Replying To shaggykev: "Ref wasn't great and thought we should have had a free for one of the late turnovers when a Donegal player ended up on floor. But we beat ourselves and Tyrone are within 1-2 points with rest of teams in country and capable of winning it all with the right wind. Not sour grapes as we did it against Armagh albeit we didn't do it as well in extra time but these keep ball running down the clock could do with a tweak or two by Jim Gavin and FRC. It's very very hard to turnover in that scenario at the end of a game and not great viewing imo from a neutral. A team leading in final five minutes should not be able to pass ball back into their own half to play keep ball. If they couldn't go past half way, it would make them more inclined to attack and give other side better chance of pressing and give them opportunities for turnovers. Much much harder to press than in soccer in these scenarios and i guarantee it will be a hallmark of the summer." The ability to hold on to that ball under pressure is a skill in and of itself. I don't think anything needs tweaked. Donegal were not cute enough. We needed to foul and and get the ref to stop the clock so we could reset. Similar to what Rafferty did against us - it meant there was one last play with everyone marked and a chance to get the ball back if the pass is off etc. The rules have been great this year. The only one I am still not convinced on is 2 points for a free outside the arc, even though that rule kept us in it yesterday. I know the idea is so not to encourage cynical fouling outside the arc, but it feels like a big reward for sometimes a soft free as well. Generally, you will still get periods of play that are not helter skelter and non-stop attacking. I'm fine with that. CCFabu (Donegal) - Posts: 186 - 25/05/2025 15:15:39 2612400 Link
Bit dejected today after long trip up and down the road with the mood not helped after getting a soaking going into the ground and the walk out the road to where I was parked after the game. Despite not playing well in the first if we went in 2-3 points down and I was thinking we weren't in a bad position with the wind at our backs for the second half. Unfortunately it wasn't to be even with improvement shown compared to the first. We done pretty well defensively but the 2 goals looked soft especially the first. The turnover after the two pointer was massive as alluded to here already and the keeper had a bit of a mare. The sound waves after the game from the management towards Mulreaney were forgiving which is understandable as he might be needed in the next few weeks however if Patton is out for a sustained period we're done. I was standing behind the goal he was kicking from in the second half and he looked a bag of nerves devoid of confidence to get a quick one away to ensure possession. The kick outs were all too predictable and Tyrone made hay concentrating on Murphy. I suppose the deflation comes from the lack of threat from those other than the two Michael's......not good enough. Plus it looks like a long arduous road is inevitable to even make a semi final which will be a push given the body count. Without a fully fit McGee and McGonagle we're too light around the middle. We'll take any kind of win next weekend and take it from there. However Cavan will smell blood now especially if Patton is out. panamasam (Australia) - Posts: 2862 - 25/05/2025 15:30:42 2612404 Link
Replying To maroondiesel: "I still expect Donegal to snake the 3rd spot over Cavan, but who knows?" We should be beating ye off the pitch but knowing Mayo, you'll beat us somehow! eddieSize5Balls (Donegal) - Posts: 141 - 25/05/2025 15:33:38 2612405 Link
Replying To Saynothing: "Lockjaw, if the free you are talking about was in the 64th minute, no. Free all day long and he didn't try to buy it he was still on his feet about to shoot when referee blew the whistle. I said before, Armagh beat an out of sorts Tyrone team by a single point (with people drooling over Armagh) so this was always going to happen." Referee had an excellent game overall, Lockjaw. Can't blame ref for everything The_Fridge (Tyrone) - Posts: 2100 - 25/05/2025 15:38:59 2612407 Link
Keeper was not at fault for first goal, but it had effect on his game. jacktheboy (Donegal) - Posts: 480 - 25/05/2025 16:00:39 2612418 Link
Replying To maroondiesel: "I still expect Donegal to snake the 3rd spot over Cavan, but who knows?" Donegal will come second in the group.. Theyre still contenders for Sam. Yesterday's game was a brilliant game to be played in such terrible conditions in the wind and rain. Tyrone showed everyone that they also are contenders and that was always going to be a big possibility. Darragh Canavan was very quiet yet they still won. Tyrone were fitter And had much more hunger . They've found a new lease of life under a great manager in Malachy O Rourke. This all doesn't change the fact that Donegal are still a great team. border Gael (Monaghan) - Posts: 912 - 25/05/2025 16:08:54 2612421 Link
Replying To SaffronDon: "I doubt anyone in Donegal would hand their Ulster silverware back in exchange for fresher players for the next round. They have two more fixtures, both very winnable if they are focused." Of course not. Cavan or any team in Ulster would love to win Ulster and certainly weren't playing any kind of long game as alluded to. Pure nonsense. panamasam (Australia) - Posts: 2862 - 25/05/2025 16:22:32 2612428 Link
Replying To CCFabu: "From where I was sat it looked like Roarty stood him up and he over carried, but my bias is likely showing! Was no surprise to me that Tyrone won, that was always a 50/50 game in my view. Fairly opens up for yous now, a good route to a semi final is there" Not bias. I was close to it from my vantage point in the terrace behind the goal. Roarty and I think Ban had him locked in and he tried to run through Roarty and if anything it should've been a run out for charging. The ref indicated it was a hold but was 50/50 and half a dozen in that regard. There was another close to the goals where Roarty got penalised for what looked an excellent tackle. Saying that I think the ref done pretty well in those conditions without seeing the game back. Donegal had too many poor wides and really poor turnovers with a keeper who wasn't up to it on the day which Tyrone capitalised on deserving the win. panamasam (Australia) - Posts: 2862 - 25/05/2025 16:29:34 2612432 Link
Replying To border Gael: "Donegal will come second in the group.. Theyre still contenders for Sam. Yesterday's game was a brilliant game to be played in such terrible conditions in the wind and rain. Tyrone showed everyone that they also are contenders and that was always going to be a big possibility. Darragh Canavan was very quiet yet they still won. Tyrone were fitter And had much more hunger . They've found a new lease of life under a great manager in Malachy O Rourke. This all doesn't change the fact that Donegal are still a great team." Fair play Border Gael, an honest and balanced assessment, especially considering some of the tripe that has appeared here from outside contributors. My honest opinion is that we would've gotten over the line with Shaun Patton. But those are the fine margins in football matches these days. SouthOfTheGap (Donegal) - Posts: 790 - 25/05/2025 16:52:30 2612438 Link
Replying To jacktheboy: "Keeper was not at fault for first goal, but it had effect on his game." What? He was 100% at fault. eddieSize5Balls (Donegal) - Posts: 141 - 25/05/2025 16:52:35 2612439 Link
Replying To The_Fridge: "Referee had an excellent game overall, Lockjaw. Can't blame ref for everything" I dont think my posts suggested that the ref cost us the game? I highlighted one decision as being soft, but stated that Tyrone deserved their win nonetheless. Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9779 - 25/05/2025 16:57:47 2612441 Link