2017 Donegal county football team season

Donegal county football team

2017 season
Stadium	MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey
NFL D1	3rd
All-Ireland SFC	Round 4 qualifier
Ulster SFC	Semi-finalist
←  2016 2018  →

The following is a summary of Donegal county football team's 2017 season.

Squad

Ethan O'Donnell ^[1]

Personnel changes

Richard Thornton from Coalisland helped train the team in 2017. ^[2] Thornton took over from former Westmeath footballer Jack Cooney after two years, while Brendan Kilcoyne stayed on as a selector. ^[3]

2012 All Star Colm McFadden retired at the end of the previous season. ^{[4] [5]} As did Eamon McGee (though he never won an All Star). ^[6]

Christy Toye, Rory Kavanagh and David Walsh also retired ahead of the 2017 season. ^[7] Leo McLoone also left. ^[8] So did Odhrán Mac Niallais. ^{[9] [10]} And Anthony Thompson. ^[11]

On Valentine's Day, Neil Gallagher attended training at Convoy — it was upon the Convoy turf that he broke down for the final time and relinquished his status as an inter-county footballer. ^[12] The manager later described him as "very disappointed… He wanted to give it a go… He got the back re-scanned and tried to build it up". ^[12] He announced his retirement from inter-county football at the age of 33 on 20 February 2017. ^[13]

Competitions

Dr McKenna Cup

Main article: 2017 Dr McKenna Cup

National Football League Division 1

Main article: 2017 National Football League (Ireland)

In the opening game against Kerry, three players had their senior debuts (Jason McGee, Michael Langan and Jamie Brennan), with Caolan Ward and Paul Brennan making their first competitive starts. ^[14]

Table

  Qualify for Division 1 final  Automatic relegation to Division 2

Team	Pld	W	D	L	F	A	Diff	Pts
Dublin	7	4	3	0	6-109	4-72	43	11
Kerry	7	3	2	2	6-103	7-87	13	8
Donegal	7	3	2	2	5-90	7-74	10	8
Monaghan	7	3	2	2	7-79	5-82	3	8
Mayo	7	4	0	3	3-90	4-90	-3	8
Tyrone	7	3	1	3	3-87	4-81	3	7
Cavan	7	1	2	4	4-72	2-101	-23	4
Roscommon	7	1	0	6	6-85	7-128	-46	2

• Kerry, Donegal, Monaghan and Mayo are ranked by score difference.

Fixtures

Donegal v Kerry

5 February 2017Round 1	Donegal	1-17 - 2-17	Kerry	O'Donnell Park, Letterkenny
14.00	Michael Murphy 1-3 (1-0, pen, 0-3 frees), Patrick McBrearty 0-4 (0-3 frees), Ciarán Thompson 0-3, Darach O'Connor 0-2, Paul Brennan, Martin O'Reilly, Ryan McHugh, Eoin McHugh and Conor Gibbons 0-1 each.	Report	Paul Geaney 2-4 (0-2 frees), James O’Donoghue 0-3, Jack Savage 0-3 (0-1 free), Donnchadh Walsh 0-2, Tom O’Sullivan, David Moran, Jonathan Lyne, Paul Murphy and Jack Barry 0-1 each.	Referee: Maurice Deegan (Laois)

Roscommon v Donegal

12 February 2017Round 2	Roscommon	2-09 - 0-16	Donegal	Dr Hyde Park, Roscommon
14.00	Ciaran Murtagh 1-4 (0-2 frees), Conor Devaney 1-0, Enda Smith, Kevin Higgins 0-2 each, Fintan Cregg 0-1	Report	Ciarán Thompson, Martin O'Reilly, Eoin McHugh 0-3 each, Patrick McBrearty 0-2 (0-1f), Michael Murphy 0-2 (0-2f) each, Michael Carroll, Eoghan Bán Gallagher, Jamie Brennan 0-1 each

Donegal v Dublin

26 February 2017Round 3	Donegal	2-05 - 1-08	Dublin	MacCumhail Park, Ballybofey
14.00	Jason McGee 1-1, Ryan McHugh 1-0, Ciarán Thompson, Michael Murphy 0-2f each	Report	Niall Scully 1-1, Dean Rock (0-3f), Shane B. Carthy, Ciaran Reddin, Ciarán Kilkenny, David Byrne 0-1 each

Cavan v Donegal

4 March 2017Round 4	Cavan	0-11 - 1-16	Donegal	Breffni Park, Cavan
19:00		Report

Donegal v Tyrone

18 March 2017Round 5	Donegal	0-12 - 0-06	Tyrone	MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey
19:00		Report

Donegal v Monaghan

26 March 2017Round 6	Donegal	1-11 - 1-11	Monaghan	Fr Tierney Park, Ballyshannon
15:00		Report

Mayo v Donegal

2 April 2017Round 7	Mayo	1-12 - 0-13	Donegal	MacHale Park, Castlebar
14:00		Report		Attendance: 14,102

Ulster Senior Football Championship

Main article: 2017 Ulster Senior Football Championship

The draw for the 2017 Ulster Senior Football Championship took place in Dublin in mid-October 2016. ^[15] In the quarter-final victory against Antrim, four players had their first championship starts (Jamie Brennan, Michael Carroll, Jason McGee and Caolan Ward). ^[16]

Bracket

	Preliminary round					Quarter-finals					Semi-finals					Final
						Derry		0-11
						Tyrone		0-22
											Tyrone		1-21
											Donegal		1-12
						Donegal		3-19
						Antrim		1-9
																Tyrone		2-17
																Down		0-15
						Down		0-15
						Armagh		2-7
											Down		1-14
											Monaghan		0-15
						Cavan		0-15
	Monaghan		1-20			Monaghan		1-15
	Fermanagh		1-11

Fixtures

21 May 2017

4:00 pm

Donegal	3-19 - 1-09	Antrim
M Murphy 0-6 (5f), P McBrearty 1-2 (2f), J Brennan 1-1, C Thompson 0-4 (3f), P McGrath 1-0, M Langan 0-2, H McFadden, K Lacey, F McGlynn, M McHugh 0-1 each	Report	CJ McGourty 0-6 (6f), C Small 1-0, T McCann 0-2, S Beatty 0-1

MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey , Ballybofey

Attendance: 10,083

Referee: Paddy Neilan (Roscommon)

18 June 2017 2:00 pm	Tyrone	1-21 - 1-12	Donegal	St Tiernach's Park, Clones Attendance: 22,609 Referee: David Gough (Meath) Man of the Match: Pádraig Hampsey
	Tiernan McCann 1-1, Niall Sludden 0-4, Kieran McGeary 0-3, Mark Bradley 0-2, Mattie Donnelly 0-2, Peter Harte 0-2, Padraig Hampsey 0-2, David Mulgrew 0-1, Sean Cavanagh 0-1 (f), Declan McClure 0-1, Ronan O'Neill 0-1, Niall Morgan 0-1 (45).	Report	Patrick McBrearty 0-6 (2fs), Michael Murphy 0-3 (2 '45's), Micheal Carroll 1-0, Martin Reilly 0-1, Michael Langan 0-1, Hugh McFadden 0-1.

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All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

Main article: 2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

22 July 7:00pm Round 4A	Donegal	0-14 – 4-17	Galway	Markievicz Park, Sligo Attendance: 10,564 Referee: Anthony Nolan (Wicklow) Man of the Match: Johnny Heaney (Killanin)
	Paddy McBrearty 0-6 (2f), Michael Murphy 0-4 (3f, 1 '45), Martin O’Reilly 0-2, Martin McElhinney 0-1, Michael Langan 0-1	Report	Johnny Heaney 2-2, Sean Armstrong 0-6 (4f), Liam Silke 1-0 (pen), Danny Cummins 1-0, Gary O’Donnell 0-2, Shane Walsh 0-1, Paul Conroy 0-1, Ian Burke 0-1, Damien Comer 0-1, Eamonn Brannigan 0-2, Michael Daly 0-1

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Management team

• Strength and conditioning coach: Paul Fisher ^[17]

Awards

Footballer of the Year

Patrick McBrearty ^[18]

GAA.ie Football Team of the Week

Included:

• 27 February: Michael Murphy ^[19]
• 6 March: Paddy McGrath, Ciarán Thompson ^[20]
• 20 March: Paddy McGrath, Ciarán Thompson, Ryan McHugh; ^[21] McHugh nominated for, and selected as, Footballer of the Week ^{[22] [23]}
• 28 March: Michael Murphy; selected as, Footballer of the Week ^[24]
• 3 April: Michael Murphy ^[25]
• 22 May: Paddy McGrath, Frank McGlynn, Ciarán Thompson ^[26]
• 19 June: Patrick McBrearty ^[27]
• 24 July: Patrick McBrearty ^[28]

All Stars

One nomination, for Patrick McBrearty. ^[29]

References

1. Ferry, Ryan (12 August 2021). "Ethan eager to play final". Donegal News . p. 67. O'Donnell heads into the county final after a breakthrough season with the Donegal seniors. He was involved with the Donegal panel in 2017 and 2020, but found his game time limited. However, he came on in the first league match against Tyrone this year, and ended up featuring in five of the seven games that the county side played… 'Peadar Mogan got injured before the Dublin match and I got my wee break then'... O'Donnell started against Dublin in the league semi-final, and he was thrown in from the off against Derry in the Ulster quarter-final. Further details in the print edition.
2. Craig, Frank (10 September 2020). "Naomh Conaill face a tough St Eunan's test". Donegal News . p. 68. Opposite number Thornton, a Coalisland native, is into his third year now with the St Eunan's senior footballers. The first of those, 2018, was as assistant to Maxi Curran. He stepped up to the helm last season… He was no stranger to the local scene here in the county, even before then, having helped out as Donegal trainer under Rory Gallagher back in 2017.
3. Keys, Colm (4 January 2017). "Only six new inter-county gaelic football managers in 2017". Irish Independent . Retrieved 14 January 2017.
4. Fogarty, John (8 August 2016). "Colm McFadden walks and may be first of many to exit big stage". Irish Examiner . Retrieved 8 August 2016.
5. "Record scorer McFadden calls time on Donegal career". RTÉ Sport. 7 August 2016. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
6. Kiely, Ben (8 August 2016). "Eamon McGee's retirement announcement right up there with the greatest in GAA history". JOE.ie . Retrieved 8 August 2016.
7. O'Brien, Kevin (10 January 2017). "Trio of Donegal All-Ireland winners announce their retirement from inter-county football". The42.ie . Retrieved 10 January 2017.
8. McNulty, Chris (20 February 2019). "'A real leader' — Leo McLoone set for 100th Donegal appearance" . Retrieved 20 February 2019.
9. "Odhrán MacNiallais confirms Donegal departure". RTÉ Sport. 7 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
10. McNulty, Chris (24 September 2017). "Odhrán Mac Niallais and Leo McLoone set for Donegal returns: Duo opted out of panel in 2017 and have spent summer playing in New York". The Irish Times . Retrieved 24 September 2017.
11. McNulty, Chris (9 March 2018). "Exclusive: 2012 All-Ireland winner to return from Donegal exile" . Retrieved 9 March 2018.
12. McNulty, Chris (21 February 2017). "Gallagher retirement a 'sad day' for Donegal". Irish Independent . Retrieved 21 February 2017.
13. "Donegal Midfielder Neil Gallagher to retire from inter-county football". Highland Radio. 20 February 2017. Archived from the original on 20 February 2017.
14. O'Brien, Kevin (3 February 2017). "Underage Kerry stars make the jump to senior as 4 league starting debuts handed out". The42.ie . Retrieved 3 February 2017. Jason McGee, Michael Langan and Jamie Brennan will make their senior debuts for Donegal, while Caolon[sic] Ward and Paul Brennan are set to start a competitive fixture for the first time.
15. "2017 Ulster Championship Draw". 14 October 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
16. Doggett, Eamon; Byrne, Cormac (21 May 2017). "Donegal v Antrim as it happened: Updates from the Ulster Football Championship — The sides clash at MacCumhaill Park at 4pm today" . Retrieved 21 May 2017. Donegal will be heavy favourites and will field four debutants in Caolan Ward (St. Eunan's), Jason McGee (Cloughaneely), Michael Carroll (Gaoth Dobhair) and Jamie Brennan (Bundoran).
17. Watters, Andy (15 December 2020). "A level playing field? Donegal coach Paul Fisher laments lack of resources in quest to close gap on Dublin". The Irish News . Retrieved 15 December 2020. But Paul Fisher, the man who has overseen that programme for the last six years has reluctantly decided that it is time to move on. With a gym to run, a family to support and a Masters to complete, the Letterkenny native has stepped down after playing a vital role in the successes of managers Jim McGuinness, Rory Gallagher and Declan Bonner.
18. "Donegal GAA Annual Award Winners & Details of the Awards Banquet". 7 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
19. "GAA.ie Football Team of the Week". 27 February 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
20. "GAA.ie Football Team of the Week". 6 March 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
21. McNulty, Chris (20 March 2017). "Three Donegal players are named on GAA.ie Team of the Week" . Retrieved 20 March 2017.
22. "GAA.ie Footballer of the Week nominations". 20 March 2017. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
23. "Ryan McHugh named GAA.ie Footballer of the Week". 21 March 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
24. "Michael Murphy voted GAA.ie Footballer of the Week". 28 March 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
25. "GAA.ie Football Team of the Week". 3 April 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
26. "GAA.ie Football Team of the Week". 22 May 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
27. "GAA.ie Football Team of the Week". 19 June 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
28. "GAA.ie Football Team of the Week". 24 July 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
29. O'Toole, Fintan (21 September 2017). "13 for Dublin and 12 for Mayo in 2017 All-Star football nominations: Tyrone, Kerry, Kildare, Down, Roscommon, Armagh, Monaghan and Donegal also have nominees". The42.ie . Retrieved 21 September 2017.