Seniors give up unbeaten record

Our seniors gave up their unbeaten record to the Macs on a scoreline of 0.13 to 0.08 at the weekend. The Donegal side were totally outclassed in all areas in the first half. If it were not for 2 superb saves from Fergal Murphy and a last gasp tackle on Colm McCrory from Cahir Healy, this game would have been far out of Donegals reach at half time. Instead a 6 point margin gave Donegal every chance. A much improved second half performance saw Donegal get back to within 2 points, but the Macs pulled away to win by 5. To read a report on the game, follow the below link to Rory O'Donnells blog @ www.tharantrasnan.com

Click here to read report



The juniors received a walk over against Kerry on Saturday due to Kerry inability to field. This sees Donegal stay joint top with the Macs. A friendly game followed which Donegal won comfortably.

Both teams now see a break until Sunday August 16th when both teams meet Cork in their final league games before the championship semi finals.

Our golf classic goes ahead this weekend at the Newton Commonwealth GC. First tee time is 11.00am. All welcome

Donegal remain unbeaten

Our seniors remain unbeaten in the 2009 Boston championship after surviving a Galway comeback in the second half of yesterdays game at Canton. Solid performances from Fergal Murphy, Cahir Healy and Kevin Curran meant that Donegal did enough do keep their unbeaten run in tact. Next up for Donegal is a rematch of the 2008 championship decider against MacAnespies. With Donegal 2 points clear of the Macs, there is everything to play for as both teams try to secure top place and a better seeding for the semis.

Follow this link for a full report on Donegals victory over Galway

Next weekend also sees our Juniors in action against Kerry at 5.45PM on Saturday.

Entries are still welcome for our golf outing on August 1st @ the Newton Commonwealth GC. Please contact any club member for further information.

Donegal GFC Boston featured on Hoganstand.com

See link below for a recent article in Hoganstand celebrating the 21st year of Donegal GFC Boston.

Click Hoganstand Article here

Great wins for both Donegal teams

It proved to be a very fruitful weekend for both Donegal teams. The Seniors overcame an eight point deficit with ten minutes on the clock to defeat Kerry while the juniors kept the Wolfe Tones from going two points clear at the top of the junior division. The Shannon Blues victory over Aidan MacAnespies means that the seniors are 2 points clear of Christophers and the Macs with 3 games left to play. Next up for the seniors is Galway this weekend, while the juniors have a bye week and meet Kerry on Saturday July 25th.

Follow link to read the Senior report in Rory's blog on www.tharantrasnan.com

Junior Report
Donegal 0:11
Wolfetones 1:06

Donegal got back to winning ways after a painful defeat to the Macs the previous weekend. The Macs games left Donegal without Midfielders Patterson and Byrne through injury, Ruddy and Boyce were also suspended. Donegal management faced some difficult decisions regarding the remaining playing personnel, Felix Granaghan made some unorthodox positional switches but his tactics worked out for the better. John Deery put in easily his best performance in a Donegal shirt at centre forward. His tireless running meant that Donegal played with a tempo that was sadly lacking the previous Sunday.

Early exchanges were equal as point teams tried to get the measure of each other. Doonan was getting the better of the Tones centre forward and pushed forward at every opportunity even getting his name on the score sheet. Micheal Byrne knocked over a few frees to keep Donegal in touch. The Tones were awarded a fortuitous penalty as their centre forward looked like he fell into the Donegal box. Marty McGeogh coolly slipped the penalty beyond Colin Murphy's outstretched hand and in off the post. The Tones went in at the break with a 2 point lead.

The second half started with Donegal getting a grip in the middle of the field. The centre field paring of Thomas Caldwell and Eamon McCarney eventually got the better of Murrier and Foley. Caldwell defended well while the Fermanagh man McCarney attached at every opportunity. Donegal clawed back the Tones lead with scores from McCarney and Byrne and took the lead through an excellent score from Malin man John Deery. The Tones weren't giving up easily and continued their attached. Despite the Tones adding three more points the Donegal full back line of McNulty and Porter stood tall.

With 15 minutes left on the clock and James Troy out of gas, Donegal sent in last years winning captain Paul Friel. He immediately made a nuisance of himself winning two frees converted by Byrne. Sean Doherty of Urris came into the back line for Porter and was unlucky not to covert on his first foray forward. Donegal held out for a much deserved victory and they now find themselves in a 2 way tie at the top of the junior division with Cork. Also many thanks to Paddy O'Connor for making a flying visit from the nations capital to star at wing forward.

Donegal Team: Colin Murphy(Galway),Paul McNulty(Tyrone),Robert Porter(Malin),Felix Granaghan(Bundoran),Emmet Doonan(Fermanagh)0:02,Ciaran McGee(Robert Emmets),Thomas Caldwell(Galway),Eamon McCarney(Fermanagh)0:02,Paddy O'Connor(Tipperary),John Deery(Malin)0:01,James Troy(Westmeath),Michael Byrne(Malin)0:06,Christopher Rush(Dedham,MA) Subs: Paul Friel(Urris) for Troy, Sean Doherty(Urris) for Porter, David Bell(Buncrana) for Byrne, Brian Boyce(Carrigart) for O'Connor(blood sub), Donny Bell(Buncrana), Fearghal Matthews(Carndonagh), Kieran O'Hara(Derry), Rory Flannery(Kerry), John Carr(St.Eunans), Eamon Kelly(Buncrana)

Also congratulations from all the Donegal club to Paul Boyce and his wife Erika on the recent birth of their baby boy a few weeks back.

The new Donegal polo shirt is on sale for $20, please contact club secretary Denise Trimble.

I hope to post pictures with my next report.

Another win for Donegal

Donegal continued their winning start to the 2009 season with an impressive win over the Shannon Blues. See report below.

The Juniors lock horns with Aidan MacAnespies in a repeat of the 2008 championship decider at 12.00pm on Sunday.

Donegal 1-10 Shannon Blues 0-6

With the surface of the main field in Canton sodden thanks to another week of rain, a spectacle was not on the cards. Not surprisingly there was a lot of hard work put in by both sides in the poor conditions. With an already strong side joined by Ryan Bradley, Donegal would have been favoured to win. The men from Tir Chonaill ended up comfortable winners on the scoreboard, but truth be told had the Shannon Blues not missed a plethora of chances in both halves the Donegal faithful would have been a lot more nervous come the last five or 10 minutes. After 20 minutes it looked as if Donegal could run away with the game, but the Blues started to dig in late in the first half. Things looked hopeful for a time, but the Blues never got close enough to put Donegal under some real pressure.

Donegal dominated the first 20 minutes of the game. The northerners registered the first 5 points of the game, and a goal at that stage would have settled matters early. One almost came from Cormac Mullins whose shot hit the outside of the post as he bore down on goal. The Blues failed to score during that time, and had themselves partly to blame, kicking 6 bad wides in the first half. Corner forward, Eddie Mannion, opened the scoring for Donegal with a point in the first minute. Donegal defended well, not letting the Blues forwards find any sort of stride. Cahir Healy put in a good performance at corner back, as did Peter Fahy at wing back. Further scores came from Ryan Bradley, Kevin Curran, and the aforementioned Fahy. The Blues came back into the game for the final 10 minutes. The defence lifted the team as time and again the Donegal attack broke down and things did not come as easy for them as in the opening quarter. A bit of niggle came into the game and Brian Gallagher issued 4 yellow cards, two to each side for bad challenges. The Blues also lost keeper Declan Hawes to injury, and Ken Kileen came in to replace him. The Blues registered their first score of the game in the 28th minute – a free from corner forward Alan O’Donoghue. O’Donoghue soon followed with another, and with half time approaching, things looked brighter for the Blues. Eddie Mannion pointed a free just before the break to make it six points to two in Donegal’s favour at the half.

The Blues started the second period well, and registered the first score. Philip Lydon reduced the deficit to three points. Donegal’s response was immediate, and unfortunately for the Blues, it was in the form of a goal. A sweeping move after the kickout ended in Cormac Mullins sliding the ball under the advancing keeper. Now behind by 6 points, and scores at a premium, the Blues now had it all to do. O’Donoghue put a beautiful kick over the bar with eight minutes gone in the second half, but in spite of a lot of hard work, the Blues could not make significant inroads. The northerners pointed three times on the trot to kill off any chance the Blues had of getting a result, Bradley, Fahy, and Eddie Mannion were the scorers. With the game beyond them, the Blues continued to battle, and continued to waste good scoring chances. A hard fought win for Donegal, and with a little work on the shooting, the Blues could be there or thereabouts.

Donegal: M. Hennessey, C. Healy, S. Lee, P. Fahy (0-2), S. Hannon, M. McGowan, M. McGinty, D. McNulty, K. Curran (0-1), R. Bradley (0-3), R. Withery, E. Mannion (0-3), C. Mullins (1-1). Blues: D. Hawes, S. Kelly, T. Wallace, B. Maloney, P. O’Brien, J. Blade, E. O’Neill, S. Gilmartin (0-1), E. Mularkey, S. O’Mahoney, C. McGee, A. O’Donoghue (0-3), P. Lydon (0-1).

By Rory O'Donnell www.tharantrasnan.blogspot.com