JIM MCCGUINNESS BELIEVES that for Donegal to have any hope of All-Ireland success, winning the Ulster title first is imperative.
McGuinness guided Donegal to three Ulster SFC crowns – in 2011, 2012 and 2014 – in his four years in charge and in those respective years his side were All-Ireland semi-finalists, winners of Sam Maguire and losing finalists.
[adrotate group=”66″]“The key thing for Donegal is to win the Ulster title,” McGuinness said today at the launch of Sky Sports’ GAA coverage for the championship.
“It’s a very prestigious one. If you can get out the other side of that then you can go to Croke Park with your chest puffed out as provincial champions.
“You’re not going to get the toughest draw and if you can slip into the semi-final then you go into that as Ulster champions, thinking ‘we’re in good shape and we’re 70 minutes from an All-Ireland final.
[adrotate group=”67”]“That’s the most important thing. If you get beat in the first round in Ulster it’s a long way. Be provincial champions – that’s the number one thing for Donegal and I would imagine it’s the same with Monaghan and the same with Tyrone.
“We scheduled everything up to the Ulster final from the very first training session. Once that championship ends another one begins. It’s the only show in town. Dublin, Kerry and Mayo can probably think about both championships. They have such a grip in their provinces.”
In his column in The Irish Times, the former Donegal manager said his native county were one of the few who have a chance to upset All-Ireland champions Dublin this year.
However, GAA pundit Joe Brolly disagreed in his on column, in The Sunday Independent.
“What’s important for me is that you don’t start commenting on your own comment,” McGuinness added. “We all know Joe’s situation. He got four good years out of me as manager and now he’s trying to get another few columns out of me as a pundit, which is a bit ironic.”
This year, Rory Gallagher’s Donegal began the Allianz League Division 1 with three wins and topped the table in late February. However, four defeats followed to narrowly ensure survival and Donegal were beaten 1-20 to 0-13 by Dublin in the semi-final.
[adrotate group=”45″]“In 2014 we lost the Division 2 final to Monaghan by six points,” McGuinness added. “Everyone had completely wrote us of. We were gone. This was the end of the road. We won against Derry against the odds. Won the Ulster final and got to the All-Ireland final. For me, it’s the same situation.
“Donegal have to prove it all. But at the start of a championship you have to prove it all. For me, Donegal are in a situation where my understanding is that they haven’t really pushed the button that hard during the National League because of that seven-week gap.
[adrotate group=”47”]“Seven weeks is long time and if they get out of the blocks and start that ball rolling, then I think they have enough experience within their squad and enough quality up front to win the Ulster final.
McGuinness, who is the psychologist at Celtic FC as well as working with the club’s underage players, admits to keeping a backseat role when assessing his former panel is content to do so.
[adrotate group=”37”]“It is important to be there and be supportive but also to give space,” McGuinness added. “I spoke to Michael Murphy there on the phone a couple of months back and we never mentioned the football. I was happy with that.
“There’s a different management structure and they’re working on things. So for me that distance is very important but so too is that relationship because we have been through so much. Whenever I stepped away I made that conscious decision in my mind that it was important not to be commenting too much and not to be living in people’s ears. Just let people breathe.”
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