'McGuinness one step from crowning remarkable comeback'
In sport, going back often leads to regret and dented legacies. This is what Jim McGuinness wrestled with when Patrick McBrearty showed up at his door two years ago. McBrearty had just been through a deflating first year as Donegal captain. Starting out with Paddy Carr as manager, Donegal beat Kerry in their Division One opener but stumbled from there.After Carr resigned just 149 days into his tenure, Donegal were relegated. Aidan O'Rourke, who had been part of Carr's backroom team, took over as interim boss but the struggles continued with defeat by Down in Ulster.Donegal emerged from their All-Ireland group, but after an eight-point preliminary quarter-final loss at home to Tyrone, the consensus was that the county was at a low ebb. McBrearty had seen enough and knew where he wanted to turn, to the man who gave him his Donegal debut aged just 17.McGuinness, of course, loomed large over Donegal football for nearly a decade.The Glenties man led Donegal to All-Ireland glory in 2012, stepped away in 2014, and remained absent from inter-county management.
In his time away, he worked as a pundit for Sky Sports. He wrote a book. He gave soccer coaching a go. Eventually, he was coaxed back into inter-county coaching. After a Covid-era training session with the Galway footballers in 2020, McGuinness did some work with Conor Laverty's Down side in 2023.He was also linked with a Donegal return as part of Rory Kavanagh's ticket before the job went to Carr. But this was different. McBrearty, a part of McGuinness' Sam Maguire-winning team, arrived at the coach's house in Creeslough a day after the Tyrone defeat and pleaded for him to spearhead the team's revival.It was a big decision for McGuinness: answer his county's call or keep his distance.It took some time. Nearly two months later, in mid-August, his return was confirmed by the Donegal county board.When asked about his decision to come back, he said his chat with McBrearty "did pull at the heartstrings". "There was a desire to change things and climb the ladder again and make things different. That emotional part was important," he reflected.
The aforementioned ladder had many rungs. Before a ball was kicked under McGuinness, he admitted his Donegal squad was at "ground zero". It was hard to disagree. When he returned, it was Donegal's neighbours Derry being talked about as serious All-Ireland contenders. The Oak Leafers were back-to-back Ulster champions and had just installed Mickey Harte as boss. The gulf between the two teams seemed considerable. Harte's surprise move to Derry added further spice to the Ulster landscape and when Donegal were drawn against the holders in last year's Ulster Championship quarter-finals, it gave McGuinness' side an intrigue-packed first championship outing to work towards.By the time the game arrived, Derry and Donegal had Division One and Two titles tucked away, but events in Celtic Park that evening marked McGuinness' side as an emerging championship force. They scored four goals to beat Derry and outlasted Tyrone in extra-time before denying Armagh in a pulsating Ulster final, winning 6-5 on penalties after 90 minutes failed to separate the sides.It had only been a few months, but McGuinness' Donegal were unbeaten in league and championship and already being talked about as All-Ireland contenders, which made their semi-final loss to Galway all the more difficult to stomach. Reflecting on the two-point loss, McGuinness admitted his team's "batteries ran down a wee bit".
For a team who looked remarkably fit all year, Donegal's fading efforts against Galway were difficult to understand. For McGuinness, though, there was a sense of clarity. To get back to an All-Ireland final, Donegal required added firepower. Against Galway, Donegal's six starting forwards scored just eight points between them. For McGuinness, there was a missing piece.Enter Michael Murphy.The All-Ireland winning captain under McGuinness in 2012, Murphy retired from inter-county football after the 2022 season and had been working as a BBC pundit before McGuinness called.Like with McGuinness' return, Murphy's second coming did not guarantee success, but the 35-year-old worked hard to whip himself into shape and has flourished under the new rules. Used intelligently by McGuinness - taken off early in wins over Down, Louth and Meath - Murphy has scored 0-44 in 10 championship appearances this season, significantly easing the burden on 2024 top scorer Oisin Gallen and allowing the management team to use McBrearty as an impact player in recent weeks.Behind Murphy, the Donegal machine has operated beautifully. At the opposite end of the field, Shaun Patton has been brilliant in goal and Finnbarr Roarty has excelled at corner-back. Ryan McHugh has run himself into the ground from wing-back while Michael Langan has been a metronomic presence in midfield.
For McGuinness, the parallels to his first spell in charge are striking. When he was first appointed in 2010, the team was at a low ebb after a comprehensive All-Ireland qualifier defeat by Armagh.In the first seasons of both spells, he led Donegal to Ulster titles but fell in All-Ireland semi-finals. In 2012, another Ulster crown was followed by the Sam Maguire. Victory over Kerry - whose 2014 All-Ireland final win proved the last act of McGuinness' first tenure - on Sunday would repeat his second-season heroics and further elevate his status in his home county, However, overcoming the Kingdom and in-form superstar David Clifford will require one of his most robust tactical plans.Like McGuinness, Kerry boss Jack O'Connor has found success after going back. He has won four All-Ireland titles in three spells and, like his opposite number, has breathed new life into a group stung by a heartbreaking semi-final loss (to Armagh) last year.O'Connor is living proof that managerial sequels can live up to the original. Given where Donegal sat in 2023, victory on Sunday will vindicate McGuinness' decision to come back and complete one of the sport's most remarkable managerial comebacks.
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