Donegal keep youthful Dublin at arm's length

Dessie Farrell said after the game that it's unlikely we will see Mick Fitzsimons in a Dublin jersey again.

GOOD START: Oisín Gallen scored four point for Donegal as they beat Dublin in their opening game of the Allianz Football League. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

AFL Division 1: Donegal 0-20 (0-2-16) Dublin 0-16 (0-1-14) 

On a night when the curtain drew on one legend, another watched on as Donegal opened their Allianz Football League Division 1 campaign with a useful win over Dublin.

Dessie Farrell has said Dublin fans are unlikely to see Michael Fitzsimons in action again.

Now 36, Fitzsimons won the All-Ireland Club SFC last month with Cuala and works as a doctor. With James McCarthy having stepped aside last November, it means only Stephen Cluxton remains from the trio of nine-time All-Ireland winners.

“He’s unlikely to be back with us,” Farrell said from Ballybofey. “He’s had a long, hard season with Cuala and he’s a busy man in his profession as well. He’s been a brilliant servant and we’ll miss him greatly, but that seems to be the situation at the minute."

In the green and gold corner, Michael Murphy, who returned to the Donegal senior fold in the close season following a two-year sabbatical having retired, was an interested spectator as Donegal managed to keep the youthful visitors at arm’s length.

Following the postponement last weekend in Killarney after Storm Éowyn, Jim McGuinness’s side had four points to spare against a Dublin team who kept in the fight for long spells. Daire Ó Baoill kicked Donegal’s only two-pointers of the 70 minutes - with two excellent first-half efforts - as the hosts put another five pops wide.

With a wind at their back that seemed to get stronger the longer the half went on, Donegal enjoyed large spells of possession and went in at the break 0-11 to 0-6 in front.

That lead would’ve been considerably more, only for a rake of Donegal wides. The official count was seven at the interval, although five in succession did puncture their progress midway through the half, as they led 0-6 to 0-3.

Ó Baoill was the one with the accuracy, showing that two plus two is indeed six. The Gaoth Dobhair forward knocked up half a dozen first-half points from four shots - two of traditional types and a couple of two-pointers - as the rain fell sideways to freshen things up.

Farrell lost three players to hamstring injuries - David Byrne, Colm Basquel and James Madden and one of his substitutes, Tom Lahiff, was instantly involved and saw Shaun Patton save his goalbound shot.

Dublin got back to just a point down three times in the second half and couldn’t get level in front of 12,560.

Donegal, in that third quarter, kept just in front, with Shane O’Donnell, Oisin Gallen and Peadar Mogan pointing. Ciaran Kilkenny took Dublin back to within a point, as did the second of Greg McEneaney’s scores on 54 minutes.

However, the trend that developed earlier continued. Just when Dublin looked like grasping Donegal’s tail, captain for the night Michael Langan and substitute Patrick McBrearty - who kicked three in his cameo - stretched it out to three again and Gallen’s late drive on his home patch made sure.

Scorers for Donegal: Daire O Baoill 0-6 (2 2pt), Oisín Gallen 0-4 (1f), Patrick McBrearty 0-3 (2f), Michael Langan 0-2, Shane O’Donnell 0-2, Ciarán Thompson 0-1f, Peadar Mogan and Conor O’Donnell 0-1 

Scorers for Dublin: Ciaran Kilkenny 0-3 (1 2pt), Colm Basquel 0-3, Killian McGinnis 0-2, Greg McEneaney 0-2, Luke Breathnach 0-2, Seán Bugler 0-2, Niall Scully 0-1, Sean Lowry 0-1

DONEGAL: S Patton; F Roarty, B McCole, P Mogan; R McHugh, E Gallagher, C Moore; M Langan, C Thompson; D O Baoill, C O’Donnell, S O’Donnell; H McFadden, O Gallen, C McGonagle.

Subs: J Brennan for McFadden (50), Patrick McBrearty for C.O’Donnell (50), E McHugh for R McHugh (61) Odhran Doherty for S O’Donnell (61), M Curran for Gallagher (64).

DUBLIN: G Sheridan; D Byrne, T Clancy, S MacMahon; B Howard, C Murphy, G McEneaney; J Madden, K McGinnis; K Lahiff, S Bugler, C Kilkenny; C Basquel, E O’Donnell, B OLeary.

Subs: T Lahiff for K Lahiff (25), C Tyrell for Byrne (29), N Scully for Madden (29), L Breathnach for Basquel (43), S Lowry for O’Donnell (64).

REFEREE: P Neilan (Roscommon).