LOSING BY 10 points is never easy but Frank McGlynn says this is the time of year Donegal aim to have themselves in peak condition for the Ulster SFC.
Donegal’s Allianz Football League Division 1 campaign concluded yesterday with a fifth straight loss, this time against Dublin on a 1-20 to 0-13 scoreline.
Photo caption: Dublin forward Dean Rock goes into challenge with Frank McGlynn and Patrick McBrearty of Donegal in the Allianz National Football League Division 1 semi-final at Croke Park. Photo: Ray McManus / SPORTSFILE
Rory Gallagher’s team had been faring reasonably well against a stiff breeze towards the end of the first half, when they were just three points down. However, Dublin tagged on the last two scores of the half and then had a Bernard Brogan goal within a minute of the restart and it was lights out for Donegal.
“It’s hard against Dublin at the best of times, but when you’re eight points down, you’re really up against it,” Frank McGlynn said. “It’s disappointing because every time you come to Croke Park, you want to put in a performance, but we didn’t do that today.
“We were well in the game coming up to half-time and it was only 9-6 and we would have taken that playing against a stiff breeze. Even five points down at half-time wasn’t a bad position, but the goal at the start of the second half really killed the game.”
With such an array of talent, Dublin have proven with three successive Division 1 and five Leinster titles on the bounce, as well as three All-Irelands in five years, they’re the team to catch.
Jim Gavin’s talented panel is a competitive on both on a micro and macro level, so keeping within length of their tails can be difficult as they hit a gallop.
“Their forwards were showing well and scoring, but we kept plugging away and cut the gap a small bit in the second half, but as I said, with the potency they have in the forward line, it was always going to be difficult,” McGlynn added.
“When you have to open out and go for more scores, you’re going to leave more gaps at the back and Dublin will always exploit that. We probably weren’t as defensive today as what we had been in the past, and we were well in the game at half-time, but Dublin can break away from you quickly.”
Donegal will now retreat from the spotlight and let Dublin and Kerry prepare for the Division 1 final. The next time they’ll be on stage will be June 12 in the Ulster SFC against the winners of the preliminary round, where Antrim play Fermanagh. That’s always been the date that matters.
“We have a good clean break now to get stuck into the training, and the fitness levels are nowhere near where we would like them to be for championship football,” McGlynn said.
“We have an eight-week block now to try and get stuck into the training, and there will be club games mixed in there as well. They will improve the fitness as well. It’s going to be a tough two months, but we have to make the most of them.”
