Paddy McBrearty's retirement was 'shock' for Donegal panel

Donegal's Ciarán Thompson is set to miss his county's league campaign due to an ACL tear he suffered during the All-Ireland final defeat to Kerry

Ciarán Thompson on Paddy McBrearty: "He will be really hard to replace, a great character; he didn’t mince his words." Pic: ©INPHO/James Crombie

Ciarán Thompson is set to miss Donegal’s 2026 league campaign due to the ACL tear he suffered in the All-Ireland defeat against Kerry.

The Naomh Conaill man came off in the first half of the decider last July and missed the entire club campaign. Speaking at the launch of the Bank of Ireland Dr McKenna Cup 2026, Thompson said he is targeting the championship for a return to action.

“I did the ACL in the final. I’m about 15 weeks post-operation now. It is going well, but it is a long road ahead. Hopefully, come April or May, I will be in line for a bit of game time.

“I knew in the moment something was wrong, but I didn’t exactly think it was the ACL. I tried to run it off, I tried to go back on but it was just shooting pain down the leg. I switched off for a week or two, went away on holidays and then came back and got it sorted. It was a bitter blow, to be fair.” 

The final ended in a ten-point loss for the Ulster champions.

“It is difficult to look back at it. It is where you want to be, the pinnacle of the GAA. Unfortunately for me, it only lasted 20 minutes. But looking back, it was still a good year for Donegal; we progressed well. A semi-final the year before and a final last year, it is going to be tough to come back. We have to park it and just move on. Hopefully, go better this year.” 

This week it was confirmed that Donegal captain Paddy McBrearty has retired from inter-county football on medical advice. The corner forward, who made his championship debut in 2011, had to step away due to the sustained recurrence of a knee injury.

“It was a shock to us,” said Thompson.

“We knew he was having a bit of bother with the knee and all that, but unfortunately, he got bad news and had to step away. It is a big blow for Donegal. He has been a mainstay in the dressing room for the last 14, 15 years. He will be really hard to replace, a great character; he didn’t mince his words. You need that in a dressing room as well. It is going to be a big change for us.”