JIM MCGUINNESSÂ believes that Mayo’s abilities to restrict Donegal goal chances was a vital constituent in their 2-13 to 0-11 victory in the All-Ireland quarter-final on Saturday at Croke Park.
The Mayo management team of Noel Connelly and Pat Holmes employed Barry Moran as a sweeper charged primarily with cutting out some of the Donegal supply to Michael Murphy in the full-forward berth for Donegal.
“You have to give the Mayo management great credit for making that tactical adjustment based on the threat of the Donegal full-forward line,” McGuinness wrote today in his weekly column in The Irish Times.
“There had been a lot of talk beforehand about what both teams would do. My own view was that to win Donegal, who came into Saturday’s match with an average of 10.75 points, needed to get goals and the best way to do that against a team like Mayo was to push on – two up and three up – and try to force the issue with long balls, diagonal balls.
“The dilemma for Donegal was when they have pushed players up the field at various stages during this championship they have looked a bit porous at the back. Teams seemed to get through a wee bit easier. Mayo set out to address the goal threat and in the end Donegal scored just 11 points – their season’s average, but with no goals. It was smart thinking.”
McGuinness also mentioned that the psychological baggage that Donegal carried to Croke Park having lost the Ulster SFC final to Monaghan 0-11 to 0-10 last month cannot be understated.
“I thought Donegal looked tired,” he added. “Even early on they seemed to be holding on to Mayo’s shirt tails a bit. Even though the game was tight you got the sense that the pace and acceleration of Mayo was threatening all the time.
“Psychologically when you get defeated in a provincial final it is devastating. There are dreams and aspirations going into a final, particularly in Ulster.
“They are 100 per cent there and then you’re beaten and things are thrown into chaos and you’ve to get ready for the back door, which is not what you’ve planned for on any level.”
For McGuinness’s full column please click here.
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