By Orla Bannon

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When you've been the Footballer of the Year and won it all in a highly decorated career, it's not easy being told 'you're finished'.

But Karl Lacey is not interested in proving people wrong. His motivation and desire to rekindle the glory days with Donegal stems from a pure source.

“My motivation is that I've had that taste of success with Donegal, and I want to climb those steps of Clones again and I want to lift that Anglo Celt.

“I want to go into Croke Park and have that winning feeling walking down to the Hogan Stand dressing rooms, embracing your team-mates.

“That's what it's all about for me. There's no better feeling than that.

“That's what I think of when I'm training in Convoy being dogged around the pitch. 

“I don't know how many times I've heard this year I'm finished, I'm not going to get game time. That's fine. I don't care. I'm still going to go to training and bust my ass for Donegal.

“It's not about the person who says you're finished - it's those memories about where you can go if you push yourself and deliver performances.” 

The four-time All Star played a pivotal role in Donegal's three Ulster titles and All-Ireland win in 2012. It says a lot about their remarkable consistency that they are bidding to reach the Ulster final for the seventh year in a row. The journey begins tomorrow at home against Antrim.

There is a lack of experience in their ranks these days, but the concern over that eased in the spring as the young players earned rave reviews in the league and Ulster U21-winning campaign.

Lacey was impressed, but urges caution. “In fairness they were being pulled and dragged between senior and U21 for a while, there was a lot of games going on, but there wasn't one complaint out of them.

“They just put their heads down and did what they were told. It's a good sign.

“They're shaping up well and there's plenty of confidence in them but the Ulster championship is a totally different arena and you've got to remind them of that.

“The older guys know well that you're judged on your last game.

“We lost the first league game and it's 'Donegal are going to take a while to come back'. Then you draw against Dublin and it's 'hold on a second, Donegal aren't going anywhere'.

“If we lose against Antrim it's the exact same thing.

“There's always people judging you from the outside, but it doesn't faze me, it doesn't faze Neil McGee, it doesn't faze Michael Murphy.”

Since breaking down at the end of a hectic 2012, Lacey's time on the pitch has been blighted by injury. He hopes to start against Antrim, at the very least he hopes to come off the bench. Whatever role manager Rory Gallagher wants him to play, he's happy to accept it.

Even if his influence is not what it once was, the 32-year-old remains a valuable asset.

“I'm dealing with it well. I can't push my body the same as I could. If I do, I'm going to break down.

“That's the reality of it, there's no point saying any different.

“There were three or four years there where you were pushing hard every night, but I've had a couple of operations since and at my stage of career now it's just not possible.”