McDonnell: Don’t write us off just yet

ARMAGH captain Steven McDonnell defended his team in the wake of heavy criticism following their four-point defeat to Kerry on Sunday.

Former Meath footballer Bernard Flynn was scathing in his assessment of the team on RTÉ’s League Sunday programme later that evening.

Flynn said: “I thought they’d take the game to Kerry. They didn’t, they gave the initiative away straight away. They were set up poorly, they had no structure whatsoever up-front.

“The game they’re playing, they don’t have the players to carry it out. If you take Steven McDonnell out of that team, they don’t have score-getters or match-winners.

“They have serious problems up front. That’s where Armagh are really struggling.”

However, McDonnell has backed his team-mates and Paddy O’Rourke’s tactics and said Flynn’s remarks didn’t take into account just how good Kerry were.

“People are entitled to their own opinions,” said the Orchard County skipper. “In the first half we had a game plan that worked to an extent. Kerry, being the fantastic side they are, imposed themselves into the game and made us look void of ideas but Kerry will do that to most teams.

“We left them with a spare man in defence and created the overlap and they could put that ball into (Kieran) Donaghy diagonally.”

Flynn also described one particular play by Rory Grugan as “awful stuff”. However, McDonnell has said the greener players like Grugan need time to develop.

“The young boys in our panel have to be given a chance. We all came from somewhere and you have to have that wee bit of patience.”

McDonnell also said Flynn may have to change his tune when more of Armagh’s first team regulars challenge for starting positions in the coming weeks.

The Crossmaglen contingent will be available for the game against Galway on Sunday week while Ronan Clarke is getting closer to full fitness.

“We’ll have more scoring options with the return of (the) Cross boys and Ronan Clarke — that will improve our scoring threat.

“It’s not until we have the likes of the two Clarkes, Ronan and Jamie, back that we will be at full strength so to judge us now would be wrong.

“We’ll be glad to get some top class players — Jamie Clarke, Aaron Kernan, boys like that. They’ll strengthen our team, and certainly we’ll be glad to have them back.”

McDonnell acknowledges the visit of Galway to the Athletic Grounds and the chance of confirming their Division 1 status for 2012 will refocus minds quickly.

“Galway are not going too well at the minute, but they’re going to be difficult opposition in any game, and in two weeks’ time, they will feel that they need the points badly and we’ll feel that we need the points badly.

“It’s all about relegation at this stage, but we do feel that we have done a lot of good things in this campaign, and if we manage to stay up, we’ll be the better for it next year.”