All-Ireland SFC R1: Donegal prevail in Killarney

All-Ireland SFC Round One

Donegal 2-20 Kerry 0-16

By Paul Brennan at Fitzgerald Stadium

It doesn’t get much better than taking down the reigning champions. Not just that, but Donegal schooled Kerry in Killarney, taking them for a 10-point win that was reminiscent of their 13-point success when they teams met in the Allianz Football League Division One final two months ago.

For context, Kerry had to play the entire second half with 14 men after Micheal Burns was sent off before the start of the second period. After what had been a lively and spiky first half, after which Donegal led by five at the break, 1-11 to 0-9, the numerical disadvantage turned the second half into a procession.

Quite what the result means in terms of the bigger picture remains to be seen, but how – if – Kerry recover from this will be a test of all their mental and physical fortitude.

For Donegal, the performance put to bed any lingering doubts that their Ulster quarter-final shock defeat to Down might be anything more than a one-off blip. The League champions certainly took up where they left off in how they stripped Kerry of that title back in March.

Donegal started brightly as Ciaran Moore put the ball in the Kerry net inside 90 seconds, with Oisin Gallen and Ryan McHugh firing over two-pointers to put Donegal 1-4 to 0-1 ahead after seven minutes.

Kerry, playing against a stiff wind, composed themselves and fired back with points from the Clifford brothers and Graham O’Sullivan, before Dylan Geaney hit back to back scores to make it 1-6 to 0-8 after 20 minutes.

Langan raised Donegal’s third orange flag, Max Campbell then made it 1-9 to 0-8, before Gallen and Langan pushed the visitors into that five-point lead at the interval.

That might have been a manageable deficit for Kerry to bridge had they all their resources on the field, but Burns’s dismissal was a game-changer.

Gallen and Langan were on target early in the second half to extend Donegal’s lead and thereafter it was a masterclass in game management from Jim McGuinness’s side and Kerry were ran ragged.

Tony Brosnan tried to ignite an unlikely comeback with a two-pointer on 50 minutes to make it 1-14 to 0-11, but Murphy silenced the boos from the Kerry section in the 21,738 crowd with a point to make it 1-16 to 0-11, and substitute Shea Malone decorated the victory with a goal four minutes from the end.

Scorers for Donegal: M Langan 0-5 (1 tp), O Gallen 0-5 (1 tp), C Moore 1-1, S Malone 1-1, R McHugh 0-2 (tp), P Mogan 0-2, M Murphy 0-1, M Campbell 0-1, S O’Donnell 0-1, J McGee 0-1.

Scorers for Kerry: D Clifford 0-4 (1 tp, 1f), T Brosnan 0-4 (2 tp), D Geaney 0-3, T Morley 0-1, G O’Sullivan 0-1, M Burns 0-1, P Clifford 0-1, C Trant 0-1.

Donegal: G Mulreany, M Campbell, B McCole, P Mogan, R McHugh, E Bán Gallagher, F Roarty, C McGonagle, H McFadden, J McGee, M Langan, C Moore, C O’Donnell, M Murphy.

Subs: Shane O’Donnell for R McHugh (inj, ht), Shea Malone for O Gallen (56), Ryan McHugh for F Roarty (59), Daire Ó Baoill for M Murphy (60), Turlough Carr for H McFadden (63), Sean Martin for M Campbell (64).

Kerry: S Murphy; E Looney, J Foley, D Casey; T Morley, M Breen, G O’Sullivan; M O’Shea, S O’Brien, D O’Connor; M Burns, K Evans, P Clifford, D Clifford, D Geaney.

Subs: Eddie Healy for T Morley (ht), Tony Brosnan for P Clifford (45), Brian Ó Beaglaoich for G O’Sullivan (temp, 45-ft), Joe O’Connor for K Evans (47), Killian Spillane for D Geaney (56), Cillian Trant for S O’Brien (59).

Referee: Sean Hurson (Tyrone).