Donegal have some issues to address – McFadden

DONEGAL have many issues to deal with before they can put the wrongs of 2020 right.

So says Tír Chonaill’s Hugh McFadden ahead of this year’s National Football League campaign, which will throw in on May 15.

Last year, Donegal’s season ended in defeat to Cavan in the Ulster final, and they didn’t get a second chance to redeem themselves because there was no backdoor due to the Covid-19 restricted season.

McFadden said: “We are incredibly disappointed with how the season ended. There is the pain of the final. That is not a nice thing to experience. There is nothing that we can do this year to right the wrongs of 2020. We are going to have to look to improve for 2021 so that we can be competitive in Ulster. That’s what we are trying to do.

“Given the fact that we weren’t able to get together, I suppose that lingered on for a long time. After chatting to friends and team mates, we are trying to work out what went wrong.

“All credit to Cavan. They were the deserving winners. We analysed on where we didn’t play well and we are looking at areas that we are going to improve in 2021.”

So how can they make the difference this year?

Last week, former Donegal player Manus Boyle suggested that if the county addressed their defensive issues they would make a big step towards improving things in 2021.

For McFadden, the issue was more complex.

“If you knew where we needed to get better, then you would be rewarded very well with some coaching jobs. It is not straightforward.

“We missed a lot on the night, and there were a lot of individual errors, including from myself. There are all aspects of play that will have to get better in 2021.”

After the Ulster final there were those that said that Cavan’s advantage was that they had the greater hunger to win the game.

But five months after the defeat, McFadden says he does not agree.

“I do not think an appetite to win or a desire let us down on the night. This Donegal group is humble and we haven’t had massive success without an appetite. I don’t think it was our desire that let us down. We didn’t perform well, and sometimes when you don’t perform well you get beat.”

From a personal point of view, he also felt that the things that he needed to change were unclear.

“There are always things that I can improve on. It took me a long time to get a game for Donegal and it took me a long time to become a regular starter. As I got better, I focused on areas to improve. I wanted to become a better player as much as possible. There will be different areas that my coaches will point out that I can do better in.”

During the winter, McFadden said he’s made the effort to work hard and stay sharp and has been diligently doing his work in preparation for this season.

He said he has a slight advantage as he doesn’t have to train on his own.

“It’s been a challenge. I am very lucky that I live with Eoghan ‘Ban’ Gallagher. Myself and himself have been able to keep fit and work together in the home gym that we have. That has probably kept us sane over the last few months.

“I miss the craic and the camaraderie that you get with the group. That’s the main thing that I am looking forward to before our return.”

Their return will be in the Division One North league, which will see them play their Ulster neighbours, Monaghan, Tyrone and Armagh.

For the fan of Ulster football, this will be a treat. However, will the pressure be too much for a team preparing for an Ulster Championship that they dearly want to win?

“People can read a bit too much into the approaches. Ulster has a lot of very good teams. We had difficult games against Tyrone and Armagh. Monaghan are going to be very good team. That will be very competitive so it will be good preparation before the championship.

“We are very excited. We are well used to playing against these teams and the games are usually very competitive. I think that is good for us

“We will miss the games against Dublin and Kerry. We will miss those challenges. But given the nature of the league we have, the league structure that is in place is good and will be competitive.”