First game of the year after a couple of months away. Great to get to a game. The game felt like a glorified challenge match with Monaghan not offering much resistance but the goals woke them up and in Stephen O'Hanlon they had a player whom we couldn't handle in the first half. Only for Jamie's goal we were looking at a HT deficit which was head scratching to say the least as Donegal generally controlled the game. The Monaghan goals while good finishes seemed to stem from defensive mix ups with poor tracking or players not being where they were supposed to be. This was rectified at HT and the 2 subs made a huge difference. It did take an uncharacteristic slip up from Beggan to reverse the tide but once we did we seem out the game comfortably enough. As already pointed out similar defending next week and it'll be a blow out. Jason was again MOTM and was excellent throughout. Some great scores from Langan too and Shea had a great game. He'd remind you of Brolly in his pomp and it'll be interesting to see how he copes in the heat of championship battle. Interesting to see the approach next week. Will Kerry want to put down a marker? How will Jim approach it? Keep cards close to his chest for down the line or road test a little. It makes for an intriguing game.

panamasam (Australia) - Posts: 2913 - 23/03/2026 15:03:28    2662569