And that's what defeats like Saturday's do. They have us scratching our heads trying to figure out the last time things were this bad. But in the midst of all the hyperbole and tragi-comic post-mortems we can easily forget that Derry came up against a side that are simply playing on a totally different level. A side, it should be remembered, that reached a nadir of their own just two years ago in Crossmaglen. Yet now are viable contenders for All-Ireland glory.It is easy to blame players and maybe even certain individuals following such a defeat - it's in our psyche as football fans to do just that - but we should remember that no player sets out to play badly and no member of the management team sent the side out to get beaten. When you consider the effort and sacrifices these players have put in for months on end, some coming back from serious injuries after long periods of rehab, it soon becomes apparent that nobody will be hurting more from this defeat than they.
Because of the gulf in class that manifested itself in MacCumhaill park, and the fact that the game was over after 43 minutes (if not before), this was a difficult game to analyse. In truth, if you watch Colm McFadden's goal and the move that preceded it, you would find out all you needed to know about why Donegal won this game and why Derry failed to live with them. Michael Friel had possession and carried the ball into the Donegal half. Here he was met with three Donegal players, with each one more intent on dispossessing the Swatragh man than the last. The inevitable turnover ensues. Suddenly Patrick McBrearty has the ball and the home side break at pace. McBrearty elects to pass to McFadden, but really Donegal had about three men free as Derry struggle to recover. McFadden dispatches clinically to the net.
A neat encapsulation of the story of the game. It highlighted two main problems from a Derry perspective: running into the tackle and being left to watch Donegal as they break at pace.
Unfortunately running into the tackle was a recurring theme for Derry on Saturday. It was a direct result of the number of men Jim McGuiness' side retreated into defensive positions but is also indicative of the immense work-rate they bring out onto the pitch. The Oak Leafers just struggled to get space in the scoring positions as they met challenges a far cry from what they might expect to receive in the All-county league on a Sunday afternoon. These were ferocious tackles, full of intensity and venom. The Derry players had no option but to either go to ground in the hope of winning a free, or give up the ball.
Whilst Derry tried to get men back and work in a similar fashion defensively, their level of fitness and physical conditioning just did not meet the levels required to carry it out. A prime example of this can be seen in the build up to Leo McLoone's first half goal. Before setting McLoone up to sweep the ball to the net, Colm McFadden ghosted around the entire Oak Leaf half-back line without a finger being laid on him. The Derry attackers were never afforded such a luxury.
The second problem - on display during Donegal's second goal - was the ability of the Tír Chonaill men to break at pace through the centre of the oak Leaf defence. Time and again when Derry turned over possession, the Donegal players didn't stand back to admire their hard work, they immediately set off, at pace, down the field in numbers which resulted in the creation of a flurry of chances. Derry weren't able to get the numbers back to prevent the bulk of these from being converted into scores. Mark McHugh, Patrick McBrearty and Frank McGlynn (who was awarded Man of the Match) were constantly up and down the pitch. Neil Gallagher looked like an All-Star. On another day, Donegal might have had another couple of goals. Derry weren't able to support the attack in similar numbers and were subsequently too often left looking for the long-ball option. It wasn't an option at all.
That was more or less that. Donegal's gameplan was carried out with the type of fluidity, intensity and intelligence we've come to expect from them. John Brennan's side had no answer.
Derry's rookie defence were on a hiding to nothing. Chris McKaigue looked comfortable enough for the most part, but his athleticism and footballing ability would mark him out more as a half-back than a full-back. Barry McGoldrick had a decent game in the full-back line and tried to distribute the ball out of defence quickly. John McCamley also fitted in well, putting himself about as he worked between attack and defence. Fitness may have been an issue for the Glen man having just come back from injury, but he can count himself unlucky to be taken off so early.
The Oak Leaf midfield struggled to win primary possession despite Friel and Joe Diver battling hard. One problem was Derry's insistence on hitting their kickouts straight down the middle of the field. At the start of the second half this was Donegal's main method of winning possession. It's hard to lay all the blame for this at the feet of Barry Gillis because kickout strategies must be worked on and constantly practiced on the training field. A cleverly arranged kickout strategy is the sign of a well-prepared team. The Derry minor side were capable of it in Omagh a few weeks back so it's disappointing that their senior counterparts couldn't follow suit. By contrast, Paul Durcan had a lot of joy finding Donegal players on the wing, particularly Michael Murphy and Ryan Bradley. The Derry players looked surprised every time it happened.
The full forward line were starved of service and Paddy Bradley and Emmett McGuckin looked extremely isolated for long periods. McGuckin constantly made intelligent runs and Bradley could have done little more with the ball he received, but too many attacks broke down because the half-forward line could not get into the game - a result of the high pressure put on by the Donegal forwards. Conleith Gilligan could perhaps have been deployed deeper in an attempt to utilise his passing game to bring the Derry forwards into the game quicker, however, it's hard to see how any positional or personnel changes would have affected this horrible result. In fact, so impotent was the Oak Leaf attack that they went almost 50 minutes without scoring from play.
Frustrating times for players, management and supporters alike. Defeat was on the cards from a long way out, and unfortunately the Oak Leafers accepted it too readily.
Overall, not one for the scrapbook, but it's a game and a result that shouldn't just be swept under the carpet. There are some serious lessons to be learned here, both in terms of our own failings and the display of the opposition. It's no secret that Derry have always struggled to cope with teams playing with intense defensive systems, but few of those teams ever played at the level Donegal are currently at. And that's the worry, we're getting left behind, and until we find a cure things will get worse before they get better.
Some other thoughts from Saturday's game:
- Donegal have taken a lot of stick for the way they play, but it would be hard to level any criticism at them for Saturday's performance. They can stifle the opposition as well as get the best out of their key men. Not an easy accomplishment. Despite some apprehensions about their ability to reach last year's heights, themselves and Kildare are very real All-Ireland threats to the current establishment.
- There's been a lot of talk surrounding the injuries Derry have had, coupled with a spate of retirements. This might certainly have weakened squad depth, but unless we have fifteen men out on the field all working in tandem and performing at a very high intensity, their availability will make little difference when playing teams like Donegal.
- Having said that, it was encouraging to see Eoin Bradley back on the Championship field in a Derry shirt. Himself and Paddy Bradley had a torrid 2011 and have put in exceptional work just to get out on the football pitch.
- It's been one year exactly this week since Derry defeated Armagh in an Ulster semi-final at Clones. Ten competitive games since. Two wins.
- We were all hoping that Derry's league form would be just that - league form. But Saturday proved that it's not easy to automatically switch to success mode once the Championship comes. In hindsight, if we are getting beat by eight points against Westmeath, is it a surprise Donegal are beating us by ten?
- We need to get more ball-players in the middle third. Midfielders in the modern game need to not only be physical and athletic, but should be able to find a pass and take a score.
- The Derry heads dropped in the second half, but at least the duel between Patsy Bradley and Michael Friel late on added some competitiveness to the side.
- Both Martin McHugh (on BBC) and Tony Davis (RTÉ) claimed that part of the Oak Leafer's problem is the competitive club scene in the county. It's an easy - if not lazy - assumption for people outside of Derry to make, but in reality it's just one of a few fundamental problems existing within our county football scene. Probably worth a volume of postings.
- We'll get our revenge on Donegal in Round 2 of the qualifiers.
No comments:
Post a Comment