‘The Down people came out and we needed them’ says Assistant Manager Mickey Donnelly
Down were cruising against Louth on Saturday in Newry, having built up an 11-point lead that was reduced to nine at the break.
Louth didn’t give up however, and brought it back to one but just fell short and even Downn Mickey Donnelly was stunned by the strength of their comeback.
“We came in at half time and we thought we were in a great position and we genuinely did think the wind was going to die a wee bit,” said Donnelly after the dust had settled in Pairc Esler.
"You think you're in a really good spot but I don't know if there was a pivotal moment as such because it’s just the nature of the game, we had a massive head of steam. Louth came back in the game with a head of steam, and that sometimes happens when the conditions are like that. I think Adam Crimmins’ block was the pivotal moment.”
Is there no such thing as a safe lead anymore?
“I don't think there is. Ultimately we had made such a big deal about trying not to concede goals against Louth - they scored four goals against Monaghan the last time, they got three goals in the Leinster Final, so they were coming off the back of seven goals in two games. We genuinely thought, if we can keep goals out, we're in a really, really strong position.
“But 24 points is great kicking to not get over the line. There's no safe lead because even if teams go and collapse and try and keep goals out, the calibre of [Ryan] Burns and [Sam] Mulroy are going to pick you off of with two pointers.”
“Kick-outs are huge. Louth came on a massive press, pushed their keeper out and pushed next to the defender up the field. We couldn't get our hands on the ball at all. I think allied with the whole scoring system, momentum's huge as well and we just couldn't break that momentum.”
One player who was missed on Saturday was Daniel Guinness who has been immense of late.
“Daniel picked up knock during the week and it was an awful blow to the group,” Donnelly explained.
"It's going to be a few weeks. If we could see him for a preliminary quarter-final or even better for an All-Ireland quarter-final, that's the sort of time frame we're looking at. We’re still waiting on a scan in the early part next week. It’s a huge loss because he's definitely in the top echelon of players that we have and that's not been detrimental or disrespectful to anybody. He's one of our top players and to lose him, there was no mind games in terms of running down the line to keep him the squad. We wanted to give him every chance to try and make it for today, but unfortunately it just came too soon and he's not right.”
Super Supporters
One thing that was a huge boost to the county though was the massive support in Pairc Esler and those supporters no doubt had an impact on the result
“It's fantastic to see people behind us,” said Donnelly.
“Jim McGuinness speaks an awful lot about doing it for the people of Donegal. We have a group of players that are very conscious of representing their county in the best possible way they can and their clubs and their families, and I think they did that today.
“Down people came out tonight and by God we needed every one to get us over the line on the night.”