Donegal versus Sligo; this time it’s for real

OPINIONS might be mixed on the championship’s second chance system, but its capacity to throw up unusual pairings is undeniable.

For the second time in a week, close neighbours in the west who rarely, if ever, meet outside challenge games, will contest a do-or-die championship battle.

Unlike the hurlers of Clare and Galway, the footballers of Donegal and Sligo have never met before in a competitive summer game. They do tend to play each other a lot at this time of year, but it is mostly friendly games to keep the teams limber for up-coming championship clashes.

In Ballybofey on Sunday, they meet in a north-west derby that means something. Expect much of the flaring passion witnessed in Ennis last Saturday.

"It is going to be different alright," Sligo sharp-shooter Dessie Sloyan says. "We have never played each other before in a game that means something so it will be a interesting one.

"We have played each other a lot in the past few years the teams would know each other really well but they have just been challenge games. Having said that, they have always been high-scoring affairs and I would expect the same on Sunday, even if it will obviously be a lot tighter than any of our challenge games."

There are a lot of similarities between Donegal and Sligo. Had lady luck favoured both teams in their drawn quarter-final encounters last August they would have clashed in an All-Ireland semi-final. Since then, both have seemed to be in varying stages of decline, and while Donegal's would appear more pronounced, Sloyan isn't taking anything for granted.

"Donegal play a free-flowing style of football, similar to our own," the talented forward remarked. "This is a big chance for both teams. We would both be disappointed with how we performed in the provincial championship and this is the chance for one of the sides to redeem themselves."

Sligo need redemption. The summer had started with talk of that elusive Connacht crown. It has been 28 years since Mickey Kearns led Sligo to glory but it all disintegrated in a poor display against Mayo.

"Nobody is saying much about the Mayo game. There is still a certain air of disappointment about. Hopefully, the fact that we have Donegal to look forward to now will focus minds again. Going into the Mayo game, we felt we had a really strong chance of a Connacht title. There was a lot of expectancy about, particularly after the season we had last year.

"But Mayo played very well. They set out to stop us playing and that is what they did. We wanted to impose our own style on the game, but failed to stop Mayo imposing their style."

A lot of reasons have been bandied around Sligo for their strangely subdued surrender against Mayo, but Sloyan isn't paying attention to any of them. "People have been saying the absence of Dara [McGarty] and Kieran [Quinn] showed against Mayo, but we knew we were missing them since the start of the year.

"And the fellas that came in for them did a good job, too. That is no excuse for our performance against Mayo. Maybe, the level of expectation in the county got to the players. Because of last year and our performances against Armagh and Tyrone, people were thinking of a Connacht title, and that can sometimes sit in the back of a players' head."

*Five of the second round qualifiers will take place on Saturday. Dublin and Derry will meet in Clones on Saturday week (June 28th) with the final qualifier between Cavan and the losers of the Down v Fermanagh Ulster championship semi-final taking place on Sunday week (June 29th).

The full list of confirmed fixtures is:

Bank of Ireland All Ireland Qualifiers (Round 2, 4.15pm unless stated):

Saturday - Leitrim v Roscommon, Carrick-on-Shannon; Antrim v Armagh, Casement Park; Clare v Offaly, Ennis; Monaghan v Meath, Clones; Carlow v Tipperary, Thurles, 3.30pm

Sunday - Donegal v Sligo, Ballybofey, 2.15pm

Saturday, June 28th: Derry v Dublin, Clones.

Sunday June 29th: Fermanagh/Down v Cavan, Enniskillen or Newry, 3pm

Guinness All Ireland HC (preliminary round): Saturday - Derry v Kerry, Tullamore, 3pm

All Ireland B HC semi-final: Sunday - Kildare v Wicklow, Carlow, 3.30pm