Hugh McFadden: You have to experience bad days to really appreciate good ones

Hugh McFadden says Donegal won’t rush the savouring of their latest Ulster SFC win.

The side’s epic dismissal of Armagh, after extra-time on Saturday evening in Clones, was an instant classic that had absolutely everything a provincial final should have.

It had quality, it had heat, and it had the kind of throwback niggle and abrasion that left you in no doubt that both sides really don’t like each other.

And when you put all of that in a bubbling pot like St Tiernach’s Park was and give it a right good stir, you get what we got at the weekend.

McFadden - who netted a huge goal early in the second half is back to his very best for Donegal. And given the chaotic nature of the landscape around the middle sector under the new rules, that’s a huge plus for Jim McGuinness.

The Killybegs man admits that it had been a frustrating few seasons for him personally, but that a clean bill of health right now is allowing him to once again put his best foot forward.

“I’m still not completely happy with my game,” he told Donegal Live. “There are loads of areas to improve upon. But being injury-free is making a difference.

“There were two or three seasons there where niggles and even some surgeries just meant you were always chasing the rest of the group.

“You were fit to play but not fit to perform, if that makes sense. I’m one of those lads who simply needs to be at my optimum to be competitive and to contribute.

“And the truth is, if you’re not at it right now in this group, there are so many good players looking to get involved that you will slip down the pecking order. So there is huge motivation and competition there.”

McFadden explains that off the back of last season, and with no injury setbacks in between, he was finally able to really target pre-season.

He added: “I’ve just got the head down since we came back in early in the year. I’ve been lucky that I’ve been injury-free, and that’s allowed me to really build fitness.

“And when you have the work under your belt, it’s a great starting point. You just know it’s then up to you - no excuses - to go and do your absolute best. And that’s all you can hope for as a player.

“It’s nice to be off the physio bench and on the football pitch.”

Donegal’s 2-23 to 0-28 dismissal of the reigning All-Ireland champions had a little bit of everything and left the 28,788 present in Clones breathless by the time the curtain fell on all the drama.

There were times during that saga, particularly in extra-time, when Donegal looked like they were being kept up by the ropes, like a boxer whose heart is more willing than his legs, which are determined to fold under him.

But Ciaran Moore landed a huge haymaker in that same spell, and McFadden agrees it was a big moment.

“They’d just gone ahead, I think, but Michael Langan was able to work it, and Ciaran kept his cool to find the net. Then Evan and Niall O’Donnell—right at the very end—it was the calmness of the execution more than anything else that stood out.

“So we’re very proud of the result but also the resilience. Like, Stephen McMenamin and Finnbarr Roarty there right at the end...

“How they managed to avoid traffic and retain possession under that pressure was just amazing. There were parts of the performance that weren’t great.

“But under the new rules, and just the chaotic nature of the game right now, it’s very hard to find consistency across the 70 or even 90 minutes like today.

“And they are All-Ireland champions and had huge motivation themselves. We’d be disappointed we coughed up seven-point and six-point leads in both halves.

“So there are things we can go away and get better at.”

It’s easy to forget now—particularly when you consider just where Donegal are currently at in the pecking order in the race for Sam Maguire—but 2023 isn’t that far back in the rearview mirror that it’s completely disappeared over the horizon.

That disastrous season, where a prolonged and bungled effort to find Declan Bonner’s successor tipped the first domino, put Donegal GAA under a serious microscope.

They are old coals at this stage that don’t need raking, particularly as Donegal have just retained the Anglo Celt Cup.

But McFadden says the pain of that entire experience is still a motivating factor for the group.

“I’m very proud of the players and the group as a whole. Things can change very quickly, so you have to appreciate this and just live in the moment.

“People are asking about the All-Ireland series already and the group stages but, to be honest, I’m not avoiding any of that.

“But for tonight and maybe a large chunk of tomorrow, all of that can wait.

“There was a 12 to 18-month period there not that long ago where we were at a very low ebb. But all those lads in there stuck at it.

“So to go back-to-back in Ulster, after all of that—it’s a huge turnaround.

“It was a very tough time, you can’t deny that. We weren’t performing, we weren’t organised. And from the very beginning, we were on the back foot as we were playing catch-up with a late start.

“And we were giving up just as much time—actually even more—in the early stages of that season as we were late to get going.

“A lot of the lads in there were part of that, and the harder we tried, the harder it got. So that’s why I’m so proud and happy for the group.

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“There are young lads in and around the team, the squad, and even the fringes of all of that right now, and this is a lovely introduction. It will inspire them, I hope, to drive on.”

On a lighter note, McFadden says someone is going to have to recheck Finnbarr Roarty’s age, as there is no way a teenager should be doing what he’s doing right now.

“Finnbarr, he says he’s 19, but he’s like a seasoned veteran already. I think we’re going to have to check his birth certificate. His endeavour and drive are just amazing.

“Again, in the dying seconds, the youngest man in the group was at the very heart of it—along with Stephen—seeing out the clock and getting us over the line.

“That was just unbelievable. The cool head he showed shows just why he’s so special.”