RORY GALLAGHER sat on a wooden bench in the O’Donnell Park dressing room and arrived at the conclusion that Donegal had been ‘well and truly beaten’ by Roscommon.
For Donegal to be so comprehensively dispatched in front of their own supporters is not common these days, although the 1-19 to 0-17 defeat is the latest in a long line of reversals at the Letterkenny venue.
Only twice – against Kerry in 2007 and against Monaghan in 2014 – in 13 games have Donegal won there since they returned there nine years ago.
It is a curious statistic, but Donegal couldn’t exactly blame their surroundings for today’s loss.
“We were beaten by the better, hungrier team,” Gallagher conceded.
Picture caption: Donegal manager Rory Gallagher with selector Jack Cooney before today’s game. Picture by Evan Logan
Although Roscommon were thankful for a majestic Cathal Cregg goal in the 59th minute, the five-point winning margin in no way flattered them. If anything, Donegal could count themselves fortunate that the dagger didn’t go in much deeper.
Odhrán Mac Niallais was sent off at a time when Donegal looked like they had, finally, found cohesion, but Roscommon – after a first half in which the visitors really announced themselves as a Division 1 side – didn’t buckle under the strain of Michael Murphy.
Gallagher said: “It was too open for our liking. We responded well in the second half and we kept at it. The sending off was a critical moment, but there was no denying that Roscommon were much sharper.
“We had trouble tacking the runners. They ran through us at will and they were able to get quality ball inside.
“It was a lethargic display against a very hungry team.”
From the moment Padraig Hughes threw the ball up, it was clear that Roscommon were in the Cathedral town meaning business.
A 0-5 to 0-1 lead in the 10th minute became 0-8 to 0-2 by the 22nd minute.
Donegal survived three clear goal chances in the opening 35 minutes.
Gallagher’s team were just 0-11 to 0-6 behind as they headed down the tunnel at the interval.
The Donegal manager said: “They got off to a blistering start and we never looked like pegging it back. We rode our luck for a long while and we were lucky to be only five points down at half-time.
“There is no doubt that our full-back line was in bother early on. We didn’t have a lot of protection there.
“We were delighted, not with how we played, but with the scoreline at half-time.”
Mac Niallais was booked twice inside a minute at a time when Murphy and Christy Toye were dragging Donegal closer. Murphy was a battering ram and it was only a shame that Donegal needed him out the field in those moments when his team were within striking distance.
Gallagher said: “We took over after conceding the first two points of the second half and we were in the ascendancy.
“We got to grips with it well at the start of the second half, but us losing the man made it easy for them. Look, they were just sharper and they were just hungrier.”
Listen to Rory Gallagher’s reaction below …
https://soundcloud.com/donegalsporthub-club-notes/rory-gallagher-after-roscommon-defeat
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