All-Ireland SFC fourth round qualifier/Donegal 0-11 Fermanagh 0-8: These are tense days in the football championship. Croke Park and the quarter-finals loom, the stakes are high and so are the expectations. Put two close rivals together and anything can happen. Which still doesn't explain why a game so eagerly awaited can fall so flat.
Did we get carried away? Previews of this game hinted at classic championship stuff - two evenly matched teams bursting with youth and fitness and a love of running, flowing football. There was plenty of running all right, but mostly in circles.
Fitness was surplus to requirements and the only thing that really flowed on the day was the water bottle. Despite the high potential the game ended on a low on several counts - low on scoring, low on excitement, and with the obvious exception of anyone from Donegal, low on satisfaction. With 17,893 packed inside Brewster Park the atmosphere was at least rousing and yet little of what happened on the field reflected it.
What won it for Donegal in the end was something akin to Darwin's survival of the fittest tenet. They more or less won instinctively, showing greater reserves of strength and intelligence, while Fermanagh's same instincts let them down. From two points behind at half-time they outscored Fermanagh 0-8 to 0-3 in the second half, during which the standard of football from both teams slipped below what was expected.
Donegal thus go on to meet Cork in Croke Park next Saturday afternoon, and the assumption is they won't have too much recovering to do. This was far from the most bruising or draining championship match played this summer - with the exception of one particular passage.
With 30 minutes played and Fermanagh up by a point a clash between Donegal's Ciarán Bonner and Eamon Maguire definitely shook things up. Bonner had run into the sideline fencing, and on returning to the field, shouldered Maguire, who had just gained possession. Whether it was intended or not Bonner's shoulder was harder than necessary, and Maguire, who was caught on the back of the neck, was carried off on a stretcher.
Bonner was booked, and Maguire was taken to hospital. His injury robbed Fermanagh of their main scoring threat. He'd hit two fine points in the opening 20 minutes to give the home team the early advantage, and with the game so finely balanced until the end his loss surely cost Fermanagh something - possibly even the game.
Until then Fermanagh had a simple game plan - pass, run, go. Initially, Donegal found that hard to cope with, but were soon holding more possession and making use of Fermanagh's frequent fouling. Yet it took Donegal time to settle. Eamon McGee started at full back for the suspended Paddy Campbell, but there were surprising moves elsewhere. The Thompson brothers, Anthony and Leon, were given first starts, and James Gallagher started his first match in five years at corner forward.
But not all the changes lasted. Brendan Boyle was soon back at midfield with Neil Gallagher, who worked tirelessly throughout and was the most consistent player on the day. That eventually gave Donegal the midfield grip they needed. James Gallagher left early, too, after some poor shooting to be replaced by Adrian Sweeney, who didn't do much better better despite adding one crucial free.
Leon Thompson's positioning in the forward line did work. He hit two fine second-half points that ultimately set up Donegal's win, although Christy Toye and Michael Hegarty chipped in with useful points too when the victory was still there for either team's taking.
Rory Kavanagh's sole point came on 49 minutes, which edged Donegal in front, 0-7 to 0-6, for the first time since the opening exchanges. From then on they maintained a slight hold on the game, with Fermanagh's error count rapidly increasing while their scoring threat rapidly decreased.
Despite hitting eight second half wides Donegal still scored frequently enough to maintain the edge, with substitute Colin Kelly providing one of the better scores in the final minute of normal time - which calmly ended the game as a contest.
Unfortunately for Fermanagh it was one of those days where nothing much went right. Martin McGrath did his best to drive things at midfield and Barry Owens held the defence together as best he could but there was little else to inspire. Tom Brewster hit two frees in the second half but like most of his fellow forwards gave the ball away too easily.
With Mark Little held scoreless and Seán Doherty limited to 0-1, Maguire's loss was felt more and more as the game wore on. Once Donegal started to move the ball forward more constructively Fermanagh could do little to stop it.
Manager Charlie Mulgrew used all five substitutes, including Fergal Reilly at midfield, but none of them worked. Donegal's defence closed up shop and pulled down the guard.
Unlike two years ago, when Fermanagh refused to die no matter what the circumstances, there was something lacking and even complacent in their game. Donegal were happy to take advantage and they improved enough over the 70 minutes to have regained plenty of confidence for the game against Cork.
DONEGAL: 1 P Durcan; 2 K Lacey, 5 E McGee, 4 N McGee; 20 T Donoghue, 6 B Monaghan, 7 B Dunnion; 8 N Gallagher, 24 A Thompson; 10 C Toye (0-2), 11 M Hegarty (0-1), 13 R Kavanagh (0-1); 26 L Thompson (0-2), 29 J Gallagher (0-2, one free), 12 C Bonner. Subs: 9 B Boyle for A Thompson (33 mins), 15 A Sweeney (0-1, free) for Gallagher (half time), 25 C Kelly (0-1) for Kavanagh (63 mins), 21 S McHugh (0-1) for Bonner (67 mins), 28 B Roper for Hegarty (71 mins).
FERMANAGH: 1 C Breen; 2 R McCluskey, 3 B Owens, 4 S Goan; 22 S McDermott, 6 H Brady, 17 R Johnston; 8 M McGrath (0-1), 9 M Murphy (0-1); 10 M Little, 11 T Brewster (0-2, frees), 12 E Maguire (0-2); 13 A Little, 14 S Doherty (0-1), 15 C O'Reilly (0-1, a free). Subs: 21 R Keenan for Maguire (32 mins, inj), J Sherry for Doherty (35 mins), 24 N Bogue for Goan (48 mins), 7 D Kelly for A Little (50 mins), 20 F Reilly for Murphy (63 mins).
Referee: E Murtagh (Longford)
