McGuinness: Show us some respect

JIM McGUINNESS has taken a swing at The Sunday Game for what he believes has been a lack of respect shown to his side and county by the RTÉ programme in recent weeks.

The Donegal boss has also taken issue with the entire sports media’s approach to his team’s style of play in recent weeks but it is the highlights show that felt the brunt of his ire after yesterday’s defeat of Cavan.

“Last week they had a joke about us as well at the end of the programme. Donegal seems to be a county where they can have a good laugh at, poke fun at, as if we are not that serious,” he claimed.

“I have no problem with people saying ‘I don’t like the way Jim McGuinness sets his teams up’ but I don’t like my players being disrespected, or my county being disrespected, and I feel that is what is happening in the media.

“(Antrim manager) Liam Bradley threw out a couple of comments and the media ran with them. The Sunday Game and the Sunday papers ran with them. For me, there is a full season to be played.

“There was no word of our 2-18 in Celtic Park, 17 points in Meath and 1-17 against Antrim.

“Everything was taken into one game and a terrible day with terrible conditions.”

McGuinness was particularly critical of the fact one TV pundit said there was no worthy claimant of the man of the match award after their opening defeat of Antrim just hours after wing-forward Ryan Bradley had been named as such. Meanwhile, it seems certain Donegal will appeal Michael Murphy’s red card at Breffni Park yesterday in the hope it will free him up to face Tyrone in the Ulster semi-final in a fortnight.