THE SIGHT OF Nathan Mullins lining out with the Donegal footballers has been one of the more interesting aspects of the sleepy GAA pre-season.
Mullins, the son of Dublin football legend Brian, was named Dublin club footballer of the year in 2017 after his series of powerful displays helped St Vincent’s to their fourth senior county title in five years.
The imposing athlete has been a key figure for the Vinnies in recent seasons and, although he didn’t quite have the tools to nail down a place in Jim Gavin’s squad, he’s been a welcome addition to the Donegal ranks.
20: Goal!
— eir Sport (@eirSport) October 14, 2017
St. Vincent's 1-03 | 0-04 St. Jude's. Nathan Mullins fires home to put @StVincentsGAA1 ahead. #DSFC2017 #ClubChampionships pic.twitter.com/E0atyZxAiv
Given the quality of Dublin club football at present, there are dozens of players who are good enough to play at inter-county level but will never get the opportunity because of the riches available to Jim Gavin.
It’s a surprise then that more counties haven’t looked into exploiting the parentage rule and poaching players who’ve got no shot of playing for Dublin.
Mullins’s links with Donegal are far from tenuous. His father taught in Carndonagh, where the family spent much of Nathan’s childhood. He was involved with both the Dublin and Donegal U21 squads, while he has a brother who still lives in the Inishowen peninsula.
Having linked up with the squad for the first time in December, Mullins scored a goal on his pre-season debut for Donegal last night in their facile McKenna Cup win over Queens University.
The midfielder played 40 minutes, hitting the net before half-time in the 2-15 to 0-6 win in Ballybofey. He was among Donegal’s top performers to the delight of his new manager Declan Bonner.
“He’s played a couple of matches for us and he’s learning, absolutely,” Bonner told Highland Radio after the game.
“Playing club football and playing at a high level with St Vincent’s, when you go to the inter-county scene it’s another step up but he’s acquitted himself very well.
“He’s a really good lad, really professional with everything he does and a real good attitude.”
Mullins is a welcome addition to the Donegal midfield, which had been weakened by the retirements of Neil Gallagher and Rory Kavanagh last winter, while he’s also an option on the half-back line.
Meanwhile, Bonner is hopeful Odhran MacNiallais, 25, will recover from a chest infection in time to play some part in Sunday’s McKenna Cup round 2 game against Monaghan in Clones.
The Gweedore man opted out of the Donegal squad in January 2017 and spent the year in New York. An All-Star nominee in 2014, MacNiallais’s return is a major boost for the county.
He’s equally adaptable at midfield or half-forward, while 28-year-old centre-forward Leo McLoone has also returned from the wilderness.
McLoone and promising young midfielder Jason McGee are expected to make their seasonal debuts in the next week to 10 days as they continue to build fitness levels.
With Mullins, MacNiallais and McGee, Hugh McFadden and Ciaran Thompson all viable options around the middle third, it may signal a return to full-forward for Michael Murphy when he returns from injury during the latter stages of the league.
As inter-county football continues to open up and evolve away from defensive structures, a full-forward line containing Murphy and Paddy McBrearty would give Donegal a serious attacking edge.
In addition, Michael Langan chipped in with 1-6 against Queens last night, while Jamie Brennan, Eoin McHugh, Cian Mulligan and Darach O’Connor have speed to burn up front.
Ryan McHugh, in the top bracket of footballers in the country, is another option in attack but may be better utilised as an attacking half-back.
The youngsters Rory Gallagher brought into the panel a year ago have 12 months of senior inter-county training under their belts and they should see the benefits in 2018.
The key for Bonner is to get the balance between attack and defence right, something Donegal have struggled with since Jim McGuinness’s departure. If they can do that and tailor the training to peak in the summer, a positive season awaits.
The42 has just published its first book, Behind The Lines, a collection of some of the year’s best sports stories. Pick up your copy in Eason’s, or order it here today (€10):
