MARC Ó SÉ says that the 2020 championship is going to be a different experience as players contend with “winter football” conditions rather than the summer weather they’re used to.
Poor weather impacted the quality of games that were on offer this weekend, as Donegal and Tyrone struggled on a mucky surface in Ballybofey.
The Ulster champions edged out the error-strewn tussle while Tyrone make an early exit from the championship due to the competition being reformatted to knock-out football.
Ball-handling issues were prevalent on both sides, while Tyrone’s goal came from a mistake in the Donegal defence when goalkeeper Shaun Patton tried to link up with Eoghan Ban Gallagher.
Darragh Canavan pounced as the defender lost his footing and eased the ball home.
Speaking on the latest edition of our new podcast, The42 GAA Weekly, Ó Sé said that this is likely to be a common occurrence in this year’s championship due to the horrible weather.
“One of the big teams gone out of the championship already,” he begins, in conversation with the podcast’s co-host Shane Dowling.
“There was a real bite to this game. I thought the very fact that there’s no backdoor – you’re either in or out and there was a championship feel to that game. Conditions were absolutely dreadful up there.
“The talk was that if the game was played last Wednesday, it would have been called off, it was so bad up there. Apparently the groundsmen did great work to get it back to playable conditions.
But as you could see, the middle of the pitch was really cutting up. Players were making mistakes as a result.
“The goal that Darragh Canavan got was a mistake that Donegal will look back at and be disgusted. Fumbled the ball on the ground.
“But again, winter football. It’s going to be a different championship this year with winter football. I’d even bring Croke Park into that and the game in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Not because of the rain and the wind but the wet ball is going to a big difference this year.”
Despite the conditions, Donegal forward Ciarán Thompson managed to finish with a tally of seven points, five of which came from frees.
Ó Sé got a glimpse of his talent last weekend in Donegal’s league clash with Kerry, but was impressed to see the Naomh Conaill attacker repeat the trick on Sunday.
“He was unbelievable today, he was just phenomenal. I saw that fella last weekend in Austin Stack Park in Tralee. Even though, Donegal had a second-string team, they had a few starters. He really stood up last weekend and he did the exact same again today.
Two of his frees were outside the ’45, just on the ’45, on the right-hand side at a really difficult angle. Those balls were brought in and two handy kickable scores for him.
“It’s fine to say that all those things count, particularly when it’s a real tight game. Tyrone will look back on that [and] be very disappointed.
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