O’Donnell ‘delighted to be back playing’ as Carndonagh eye up Junior final

Conor O’Donnell kicked 1-2 in Saturday’s 3-11 to 2-7 Junior A Championship semi-final win for Carndonagh over Naomh Ultan. 

The county star had a procedure on a knee injury picked up playing with Donegal back at the end of July, which ruled him out of all of but one of Carndonagh’s All-County Football League Division 3 games and all of their games in the championship. 

He only returned to action for the first time since the procedure the weekend before last - a quarter -final win over Urris, so last Saturday’s clash with Naomh Ultan was his first start. 

“It has been frustrating sitting the group games in the championship and the league games,” O’Donnell said on Saturday. “The boys did very well and they did very well again today. They are a very good team with very good players. I’m just delighted to be back playing with them and now looking forward to the county final.

Kelly and O’Donnell goals send Carndonagh into Junior A final after win over Naomh Ultan

Goals win games and this was a familiar story in O'Donnell Park, Letterkenny. Carndonagh got a vital goal in the opening half and then a seccond half brace eased them into the decider

Carndonagh ran out comfortable 3-11 to 2-7 winners after leading 1-7 to 0-4 at half-time, with midfielder Ryan Kelly scoring two goals.

“It took us a while to settle into the game,” O’Donnell added. “Semi-finals are always tight and Naomh Ultan are a good team. Ryan’s goal spurned us on and we turned over a few of their kickout and tagged on a few points and we were six up at half-time. 

“They had a few chances at the start of the second half which they felt they probably should have put over the bar.But we then put them under pressure and we broke and we kicked a few more points on the run. 

“Ryans is a fantastic player. He has had a few difficulties with injuries this season but when he is fit, he is a big player for us. He scored 2-1 for us there today. I think the game was over when I scored the goal but it did give us a bit of a cushion going into the last few minutes.”

Carndonagh last won the junior championship back in 2008 and will face last year’s beaten finalists Letterkenny Gaels - a side they defeated in last year’s group stages - in this season’s final.  

“We’ve played Letterkenny Gaels for a number of years and in recent years they have been one of the standard-bearers for the junior championship,” O’Donnell added. “We have been working on getting up to their level and we’ve had a few tight battles with them in the last few years and I’m sure the final will be no different.” 

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