Mcguinness full of regret after Semi-final loss
GALWAY 1-14 DONEGAL 0-15
DONEGAL manager Jim Mcguinness did not try to hide his disappointment after his side’s two-point defeat in the All-ireland Semi-final by Galway at Croke Park.
“Very disappointed, very, very disappointed,” he began at the post-match press conference.
“We thought we really had a chance of getting through and going to the Final. I suppose the summary of it will be we converted five of 14 in the second half and converted 10 from 14 in the first half.
“We ran out of steam a wee bit coming down the stretch, I think. I think Galway looked a bit more battle-hardened than us, maybe that experience of a couple of years ago (when reaching the All-ireland Final) was beneficial to them.
“Those driving runs were missed as well coming down the stretch. In a game of very fine margins, I think in the second half, those couple of reasons or those couple of insights maybe might be my thoughts on the reasons why we didn’t progress.”
Donegal failed to score after Michael Langan’s fourth point from play, which was probably his best, in the 61st minute which levelled the sides for the 10th time.
From there, a Rob Finnerty free and a closing score from play by Liam Silke saw Galway through.
Mcguinness went on: “I think a part of that has to be down to fatigue and decision-making, that the batteries ran a bit lower, and then, what you do normally or naturally becomes a wee bit more difficult. We lost that sort of flow we have had all year.
“They’ve (Galway) played brilliant football, they’ve moved the ball really well, they’ve made brilliant decisions. There is nobody going to be giving out to them.
“We said in the dressing room there, it is not a day to talk about tactics. It’s a day to reflect on the work that they’ve done and the effort levels they’ve put in and where they’ve got to.”
Donegal finish the season as Ulster champions and also won promotion from Division 2.
“It is a tough one to take, it is a really, really tough one to take, but that’s football,” said Mcguinness. “Big games are decided on moments, and there were a couple of moments there when the rub of the green wasn’t with us as well.
“We had two brilliant blocks, defensively, and the ball fell to a Galway man. You know, after two brilliant defensive blocks. You know, Oisin (Gallen) missed a free (late in the match), like, he could kick that over in his sleep.”
But he expressed his pride in the players for what they had achieved.
“We were on track and on task in the first half, we had 10 points on the board from 14 shots in the first half,” Mcguinness added.
“We had the same amount of shots in the second half, the same amount of possession, I would imagine, and we had five points in return. That really is the final analysis.”
Padraic Joyce, meanwhile, admitted it was a “tough, tough week” for Galway football with the death of John O’mahony.
Joyce’s team paid fitting tribute by beating Donegal in Croke Park and making a second All-ireland Final in three years, notably scoring 1-14 in the process, the same tally they notched in the breakthrough 1998 Final against Kildare, O’mahony’s first of two as manager.
“The 1-14 is a weird one,” Joyce admitted. “But, look, obviously, when the news came up to us last Sunday morning, we were obviously heartbroken.
“Obviously shed a tear because the man has meant so much to me personally and to Galway players. Our Whatsapp group there from ‘98, ‘01 was hopping.
“Really good mentor as well to me over the last couple of years, and I’ll miss talking to him, I’ll miss his phone calls, I’ll miss his advice, but, look, our thoughts are with Geraldine and the kids.
“It was a tough, tough week, to be honest, but we had to try and separate the emotion of that and get prepared for the game, which I thought we did well.
“In fairness, I think he got a fantastic tribute there beforehand, so, look, it was great.”
Joyce acknowledged the importance of building on Galway’s victory over Dublin two weeks back. He insisted that the win “wouldn’t have meant much to us” had they lost an All-ireland Semi-final to Donegal.
“Semi-finals are for winning, as we know,” he stressed. “I know it’s probably hard with the emotion when you’re watching the game, but overall, I thought it was a brilliant game.
“Both teams went at it. The first half was fantastic. It was 1-07 to 0-10 at half-time, and Donegal kicked some great scores. Our lads worked the ball well inside, and I just thought it was a brilliant game.
“I was happy enough to get out on the right side of it because it could have gone any way at the end. Fair play to Jim, the (Donegal) county board and the boys. But it was Galway’s day, and we move on to the Final in two weeks’ time.”
SCORERS, GALWAY: P Conroy 1-01; R Finnerty 0-4 (2f); S Walsh 0-03 (2f); D Mchugh, L Silke 0-02 each; J Maher, C Mcdaid 0-01 each.
DONEGAL: M Langan 0-04; O Gallen, P Mcbrearty (1f) 0-03 each; C Thompson (1m), S O’donnell 0-02 each; C Mcgonagle 0-01.
GALWAY: C Gleeson; J Mcgrath, S Fitzgerald, J Glynn; D Mchugh, L Silke, S Mulkerrin; P Conroy, C Darcy; M Tierney, J Maher, C Mcdaid; R Finnerty, D Comer, S Walsh.
Subs: J Heaney for Darcy (57), D O’flaherty for Walsh (63), J Daly for Fitzgerald (66), K Molloy for Comer, T Culhane for Mcdaid (both 72).
DONEGAL: S Patton; EB Gallagher, B Mccole, P Mogan; R Mchugh, C Mcgonagle, C Moore; J Mcgee, C Thompson; M Langan, S O’donnell, A Doherty; P Mcbrearty, O Gallen, C Mccolgan.
Subs: D Ó Baoill for Mccolgan (30), J Mac Ceallabhuí for Gallagher (inj 48), H Mcfadden for Mcgee, N O’donnell for Mcbrearty (both 60), O Doherty for A Doherty (63).
Referee: B Cawley (Kildare)