DONEGAL’S Mark McHugh is a player seen as the lynchpin of Donegal’s system these days.

 

The Kilcar man seems omnipresent at times.Before the Cork game, it was said that stopping the Sligo IT student was the key to the Rebels’ hopes of gunning down Donegal, but that proved easier said than done.

 

Indeed, McHugh’s fisted point just before half-time was a defining moment in the game. 

 

It was also a score that laid bare the importance of McHugh to the Donegal cause. A brust out of defence that took just 8.7 seconds led McHugh to giving Donegal an interval lead against Cork. Donegal didn’t look back – and a little while later were looking forward to an All-Ireland final.