DONEGAL BOSS JIM McGuinness has hit out at a suggestion he may potentially face a punishment for his involvement in the incident before half-time of today’s All-Ireland round one tie in Killarney.
McGuinness was furious after he saw blood on the face of Donegal player Ryan McHugh. Kerry forward Micheál Burns was shown a red card before the second-half action commenced at Fitzgerald Stadium.
GAA+ footage of the incident showed McGuinness pointing at Kerry player Diarmuid O’Connor before appearing to push him.
Asked in the post-match press conference if he was worried about a potential sanction given the 12-week suspension handed out to Dublin manager Ger Brennan earlier this year, McGuinness responded: “Are you trying to get me a ban? Is that what you’re saying?
“So you’re flying that kite, are you? You’re talking about the fact that, out of 50 people, you’re finger-pointing me. Is that what you’re saying?
“I wasn’t close to the incident. I didn’t see anything, to be honest with you. I didn’t see anything, but, listen, it is what it is. You know, there was a strike. People are not happy that once your players get split, people are not going to be happy. That’s just the bottom line. So, it was dealt with by the referee.”
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Referee Sean Hurson gives Micheál Burns a red card. James Lawlor / INPHO
James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO
McGuinness revealed Donegal were prepared for a physical approach to the game and targeted a strong opening.
“We knew coming to Kerry today that it was gonna be very, very physical. We knew that that was gonna happen and that’s the way it transpired, so from our point of view, I’m happy we dealt with that. We stood up and we dealt with that.
“We lost the All Ireland final last year and a huge part of that was physicality. And we got caught.
“We were ready and we didn’t take a backward step. If the physicality is coming, you either decide that you’re going to stand your ground or you’re not going to stand your ground.
“We targeted the first 20 minutes. We need to make good decisions, we need to try and get our hands on the ball. We need not to kick the ball away, we need to make sure that we’re good in possession. We need to relax.”
The availability of joint captain Michael Langan was a major boost to Donegal, he weighed in with five points and was a hugely influential figure.
McGuinness hailed the return of the St Michael’s club man and highlighted player availability as a key issue.
Donegal's Shea Malone celebrates his goal with team-mate Michael Langan. James Lawlor / INPHO
James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO
“Massive, massive. We’ve had a lot of injuries in the last week.
“We’ve had a lot of soft tissue injuries and we’ve had a situation, we were trying to get a lot of fellas right and they played probably more minutes there today than they should have.
“Every team is in the same boat from that point of view, people are dealing with injuries and in my opinion, in a way, you can’t put a line of form through football any more.
“It’s just an impossible thing. It’s really about when you arrive at a big game now, how many fellas are healthy. Our boys arrived today in decent shape, but we were patching three or four or five of them up to try and get as many minutes out of them as possible.
“But like Kerry are in a much more difficult situation. Armagh are in a much more difficult situation in terms of, you know, with the injuries they got.
“It’s going on in Galway for the last number of years, they’re starting to get them back. It’s not horses any more, it’s literally who can arrive the healthiest into a big game.”
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'Are you trying to get me a ban?' – McGuinness unhappy in wake of Donegal Kerry game
DONEGAL BOSS JIM McGuinness has hit out at a suggestion he may potentially face a punishment for his involvement in the incident before half-time of today’s All-Ireland round one tie in Killarney.
McGuinness was furious after he saw blood on the face of Donegal player Ryan McHugh. Kerry forward Micheál Burns was shown a red card before the second-half action commenced at Fitzgerald Stadium.
GAA+ footage of the incident showed McGuinness pointing at Kerry player Diarmuid O’Connor before appearing to push him.
Asked in the post-match press conference if he was worried about a potential sanction given the 12-week suspension handed out to Dublin manager Ger Brennan earlier this year, McGuinness responded: “Are you trying to get me a ban? Is that what you’re saying?
“So you’re flying that kite, are you? You’re talking about the fact that, out of 50 people, you’re finger-pointing me. Is that what you’re saying?
“I wasn’t close to the incident. I didn’t see anything, to be honest with you. I didn’t see anything, but, listen, it is what it is. You know, there was a strike. People are not happy that once your players get split, people are not going to be happy. That’s just the bottom line. So, it was dealt with by the referee.”
McGuinness revealed Donegal were prepared for a physical approach to the game and targeted a strong opening.
“We knew coming to Kerry today that it was gonna be very, very physical. We knew that that was gonna happen and that’s the way it transpired, so from our point of view, I’m happy we dealt with that. We stood up and we dealt with that.
“We lost the All Ireland final last year and a huge part of that was physicality. And we got caught.
“We were ready and we didn’t take a backward step. If the physicality is coming, you either decide that you’re going to stand your ground or you’re not going to stand your ground.
“We targeted the first 20 minutes. We need to make good decisions, we need to try and get our hands on the ball. We need not to kick the ball away, we need to make sure that we’re good in possession. We need to relax.”
The availability of joint captain Michael Langan was a major boost to Donegal, he weighed in with five points and was a hugely influential figure.
McGuinness hailed the return of the St Michael’s club man and highlighted player availability as a key issue.
“Massive, massive. We’ve had a lot of injuries in the last week.
“We’ve had a lot of soft tissue injuries and we’ve had a situation, we were trying to get a lot of fellas right and they played probably more minutes there today than they should have.
“Every team is in the same boat from that point of view, people are dealing with injuries and in my opinion, in a way, you can’t put a line of form through football any more.
“It’s just an impossible thing. It’s really about when you arrive at a big game now, how many fellas are healthy. Our boys arrived today in decent shape, but we were patching three or four or five of them up to try and get as many minutes out of them as possible.
“But like Kerry are in a much more difficult situation. Armagh are in a much more difficult situation in terms of, you know, with the injuries they got.
“It’s going on in Galway for the last number of years, they’re starting to get them back. It’s not horses any more, it’s literally who can arrive the healthiest into a big game.”
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