John Francis Doogan knows Inishowen will be out for revenge in Oscar Traynor match

Donegal League’s Oscar Traynor team manager John Francis Doogan knows that his side will have to fight for their lives to keep Inishowen at bay this Sunday in Ballyare (kick-off, 1pm) 

The Donegal League go into this Sunday’s encounter with a massive advantage, having beaten Diarmuid O’Brien’s Inishowen side 3-2 last month in Maginn Park last month with Paul Boyle heading home a 92nd-minute winner. 

The competition was defunct for the past four years and now the Donegal side are hoping to cause a huge upset in a match that was postponed due to the death of well-known administrator Terry Leyden. 

“The game was originally meant to on a few weeks ago but the game was put back due to the death of Terry Leyden,” said manager John Francis Doogan.  

“We had good preparation up until that point but since then we haven’t really done much because I wanted the players to go and have some time with their clubs. 

“To be fair, the clubs have been very accommodating, so I didn’t want to disrupt them. I would’ve preferred if the players trained with their clubs two nights a week.  

“We also had Letterkenny Rovers in the National Cup, so instead of excusing some of the players, I thought it was only fair to excuse them all, but we have a good block of work done anyway, we’re in a good place and we’re happy where we are.” 

Donegal had blown a two-goal lead when Edward O’Reilly’s brace was pegged back by goals from Kieran McDaid and Luke Rudden, and with it level pegging in injury-time it took Boyle to head home the winner on a dramatic upset in Maginn Park. 

“In the first match against Inishowen, there was nothing in it. We scored in the last minute and even with that, the game wasn’t over. The game was so open for the entire match. I’m just happy that we saw the game out and we expect another tough test this weekend,” said Doogan. 

We have a clean bit of health, to a degree. Kevin O’Donnell got a concussion last week playing for Rathmullan, so he’ll be out for a few weeks as will Ryan Lonergan, who broke his hand in the first game. Other than that, we’re ready for battle. 

And while Doogan admires the fight and determination of his squad, he acknowledges how hard this upcoming match with Inishowen will be, stating that he expects nothing to be handed to his side and that the opposition will be hurting following their previous encounter. 

“We have nothing but respect for the opposition. Inishowen have been the standard-bearers in this competition for years. They’re the team to beat. They know all about the competition, and to go away from home to their venue and get a result was unbelievable but there’s nothing finished. I know they wouldn’t have taken that result lightly.”