McShea's Say: This is Donegal's time to get back to an All-Ireland final

As Donegal completes their preparation for their All-Ireland semi-final against Galway on Sunday, after a very negative few years, it is just a wonderful achievement, and all Donegal fans are eagerly looking forward to heading to Croke Park in an optimistic mood for the game.  

This will be the third meeting between the sides at the semi-final stage. In 1974 Donegal never played to their potential after winning two Ulster titles in three years, and Galway advanced to the final.  

Then in 1983, a late Galway goal scored by Val Daly saw Galway again prevail, and to this day all who were at the game believed that Daly was kicking for a point when the ball dipped into the Donegal net.  

Val Daly’s son John has featured at centre-back for Galway this year, so the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Galway go into the weekend as marginal favourites to beat Donegal once again; they are quoted at 10/11, while Donegal are at odds of 5/4. The odds of the match finishing in a draw are 13/2. 

Galway’s defeat of Dublin was a game that could have gone either way. Dublin’s second-half display was poor and there was a general air of despondency about their performance. That coupled with their management's decision to call both Jack McCaffrey and Paul Mannion ashore midway through the second half was difficult to understand.  

McCaffrey’s pace coupled with Mannion’s place-kicking from the right side of the park was badly missed when Con O’Callaghan missed a simple free that Mannion would have scored with his eyes shut.  

This was an exercise of extraordinarily muddled thinking by the Dublin brains trust. To their credit when Dublin was dominant in the first half of the quarter-final, Galway showed great courage and battling qualities to rein in the All-Ireland champions.  

There are two teams who, when they get on a roll keep their best football for Croke Park. One was Down, who over the years played in GAA HQ as if they were at home in Newry, and Galway are the other outfit who feel very much at home in Jones’s Road.  

Galway football always seems to come up with talented and cohesive teams with high ambitions. In defence, they were solid in beating the Dubs, but the plaudits for this win went to their forward line.  

Galway has produced many outstanding attackers over the years, Frank Stockwell scored 2-5 in an All-Ireland final while Seán Purcell was an automatic on the Team of the Century. Seamus Leydon and John Keenan, both from Dunmore MacHales, and Mattie McDonagh were footballing artists.  

On today's team, Damien Comer and Shane Walsh can create havoc to any defence. Beside them, they have another excellent forward in Matthew Tierney. 

For Donegal, winning our first All-Ireland back in 1992 was something special, a year that dreams were made of. Bringing Sam back in 2012 will never be forgotten, but to be on the cusp of another All-Ireland final is very close to those outstanding achievements of years gone by, especially after coming from such a fragile base.  

The enthusiasm generated by Donegal’s excellence this year has created a wonderful buzz throughout our beautiful county, and the maturity of the team is testimony to the professional approach of Jim McGuinness and his management team.  

I heard it suggested this week that Galway had the better footballers. I would not swop Shaun Patton, Brendan McCole Eoghan Ban Gallagher, Ryan Mc Hugh, Peadar Mogan, or Oisin Gallen or indeed anyone else from our squad for any Galway player.  

No doubt, McGuinness will leave no stone unturned in his forensic analysis of the opposition, but I believe that Galway are less than secure in the number one position.  

One or two long balls into the heart of Galway’s defence could yield rich dividends, while if their keeper comes out with the ball he must be tackled quickly as his distribution is at best very dubious.  

In today’s modern game, managers and players make a lifestyle choice when they step into an inter-county dressing room. Their devotion to the cause of a county team means putting their life on hold.  

The prize of winning Sam Maguire, which can be out of reach for so many, remains a distant dream for most, and an aspiration for all. Let us hope that by next Monday the frantic chase for final tickets will be in full flow, because Donegal will have qualified for their fourth final in history.  

I am confident that in a close game, Donegal will prevail, and that is not my heart ruling my head. 

RIP John O’Mahony 

I was very sorry to learn of the death of John O’Mahony at the weekend, after a short illness.  

John will be remembered as the manager of Galway’s two All-Ireland winning teams in 1998 and 2001, while he also managed Leitrim to win their first Connacht title in 67 years in 1994.  

Off the pitch, he was Fine Gael TD for Mayo for nine years, while he spent a further four years as a Senator.  

John was a gentleman, who lived a full and happy life and who earned the love and respect of those lucky enough to have known him. To his wife Geraldine, and the five girls Grainne, Niamh, Rhona, Deirdre, and Cliodhna and all the family, I extend my deepest sympathies.