DUBLIN V DONEGAL

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Come on the Dubs

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DUBLIN V DONEGAL

Today's All-Ireland SFC semi-final preview - Gaelic Football, Sport - Independent.ie

DUBLIN v DONEGAL: Croke Park, 3.30, CROKE Park has sold-out for the first time this season as the 2011 championship braces itself for potentially its most explosive encounter.


Dublin ravaged Tyrone with insatiable hunger in their quarter-final clash but equally Donegal have "tackled like savages", as Bernard Brogan says, all year long.

Thus far, Jim McGuinness's men have been notoriously slow starters and must buck this trend to stay with the high-octane Dublin challenge.

They only managed two points in the first 20 minutes against Antrim, the same against Cavan and only clipped over one point in the first 25 minutes against Tyrone. They managed four in the first 20 against Derry but it took them 38 minutes to register three against Kildare.

If they start again like that today -- and if Dublin come out all guns blazing like they did against Tyrone -- it will be curtains.

To Donegal's credit, though, they haven't leaked much while they've struggled to settle into games. Indeed, Cavan's Michael Brennan remains the only player to score a goal against them in this campaign. Paddy McGrath is fit to start, Michael Hegarty and Michael Murphy are also finely tuned again while the other players fitted in a round of club games recently.

Unlike Donegal teams of recent vintage, this model refuses to press the panic button when scores don't come and instead work their way into games.

That should be Dublin's first target -- hit them with a flurry of early scores and make them come out to play. If the game drags on without Pat Gilroy's men gaining an early lead, not only will the Ulster side sit two extra men in their full-back line, they might even consider clogging it up further to inflict more frustration on their opponents.

Diarmuid Connolly was simply sublime against Tyrone from both left and right foot and should weigh in with another performance here after scoring seven points from play last time out.

And if Bernard Brogan is double-marked, will Alan Brogan make use of the extra space and maintain his superb form? They'll also need the unsung Paul Flynn to put in the hard yards up and down the wing, while their midfield should be capable of winning more than their fair share of breaking ball.

The Dublin players were back training two days after beating Tyrone and have trained hard since. They are exceptionally well-organised in defence, big and athletic around the middle with serious firepower up front (eight scorers v Tyrone), perhaps more than Donegal whose inside forward line didn't function against Kildare.

It should be a really tight affair. The statistics and scoring averages suggest this one could even be a draw

However, we think that Dublin have more artillery and have had enough time to plan for the blanket defence. Despite the magnificent work of McGuinness and company, we take the Dubs to scrape home by two points.

Dublin: S Cluxton; M Fitzsimons, R O'Carroll, C O'Sullivan; J McCarthy, G Brennan, K Nolan; D Bastick, MD Macauley; P Flynn, B Cahill, B Cullen; A Brogan, D Connolly, B Brogan.

Donegal: P Durcan; P McGrath, N McGee, F McFlynn; A Thompson, K Lacey, K Cassidy; N Gallagher, R Kavanagh; M McHugh, M Hegarty, R Bradley; P McBrearty, M Murphy, C McFadden.

Verdict: Dublin

- Damian Lawlor

[Tabbers (a.k.a. KTAB)]

DUBLIN V DONEGAL

It would be Dublins first All-Ireland final in 16 years and against the old enemy so us neutrals would like to see the dream final.

[Tabbers (a.k.a. KTAB)]

DUBLIN V DONEGAL

Nope, no family in either camp. Son born in Dublin though, does that count?

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DUBLIN V DONEGAL

KTAB;1170033 wrote: Nope, no family in either camp. Son born in Dublin though, does that count?

Yep your one of us today :H

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DUBLIN V DONEGAL

RT? Sport: GAA - Dublin 0-08 Donegal 0-06



Fourteen-man Dublin squeezed past Donegal in a dour, defensive struggle at Croke Park to qualify for their first All-Ireland football final since 1995.

Both sides packed their defence, with Donegal adopting a particularly cautious approach, which looked as if it would pay off when they eased into a three points lead early in the second half.

A low-scoring encounter finally went Dublin's way, strangely after they lost full forward Diarmuid Connolly to a straight red card on 57 minutes.



The Dubs managed just two points from play, but they just got over the line, and deservedly so, to set up a clash with Kerry in the decider.

The game was almost nine minutes old when Colm McFadden treated a heaving crowd of 81,436 to the first score, from a free.

But it was McFadden's careless pass which gave Bernard Brogan the opportunity to go one-on-one with 'keeper Paul Durcan, but the Dublin attacker sent his shot zipping wide at the far post.

The Dublin attackers were never allowed an inch of space by a Donegal defence which suffocated its opponents with strength of numbers and intense pressure on the man in possession.

Donegal also found it difficult to make progress against a packed Dublin defence, but when forced to shoot from distance, eased in front with a long range effort from Ryan Bradley.

That was in the 24th minute, and was only the game's third score, a feature which had already drawn jeers from an increasingly frustrated attendance.

Bernard Brogan converted his second free to bring the sides level, but that was to be the Metropolitans' lot in the first half.

And Donegal finished with a couple of excellent points from play, a long distance Kevin Cassidy special and a delightful McFadden slice.

It was 0-4 to 0-2 in favour of the Ulster champions at the interval, and they had a glorious goal chance immediately after the restart when McFadden broke clear, but he blazed his shot over the bar.

Goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton landed a Dublin free, his ninth score of the championship, but McFadden restored the Ulster champions' three points advantage with another superb effort from play.

Defences were still very much on top, but the introduction of Kevin McManamon was a major plus for Dublin, his strong running exposing some weaknesses in a Donegal rearguard unit which had lost key man Karl Lacey through injury.

A Cluxton '45 had just narrowed the gap to a point when Connolly was sent off for striking out at Marty Boyle, but that setback appeared to lift Pat Gilroy's side.

They pushed on and scored the final three points of the game, McManamon bringing his side level, before Bryan Cullen and Brogan hammered home the final nails.

Dublin: S Cluxton (0-2, 1f, 1 '45), C O'Sullivan, R O'Carroll, M Fitzsimons, J McCarthy, G Brennan, K Nolan, D Bastick, MD Macauley, P Flynn, B Cahill, B Cullen (0-1), A Brogan, D Connolly, B Brogan (0-4, 4f).

Subs: P McMahon for O'Carroll, K McManamon (0-1) for Cahill, E O'Gara for McCarthy, E Fennell for Bastick, Ross McCarroll for Flyhbnn

Donegal: P Durcan, E McGee, N McGee, F McGlynn, A Thompson, K Lacey, K Cassidy (0-1), R Kavanagh, N Gallagher, M McHugh, D Walsh, R Bradley (0-1), C Toye, M Murphy, C McFadden (0-4, 2f).

Subs: M Hegarty for Toye, M Boyle for Lacey, M McElhinney for Hegarty, P McBrearty for Walsh

Referee: M Deegan (Laois).