DONEGAL will bid to win their eleventh Ulster Senior Football Championship when they square off against Armagh in Sunday’s provincial decider in Clones.
The anticipation has been building in the county all week in the lead-up to the match and a ticket scramble will see many supporters miss out on the big day in Clones.
There is huge interest as Donegal bid to win their first Ulster title since 2019. Many of the players tasted the pain of defeat in 2020 and 2022 and will be motivated to come out on the right side of the result this time around.
Armagh were beaten in last year’s final by Derry and while they currently have four more Ulster titles to their name than Donegal, they haven’t captured the Anglo Celt Cup since 2008.
Donegal bainisteoir Jim McGuinness led Donegal on Ulster Final day four times in his first stint in charge, winning three of those deciders.
It’s ten years since he was on the sideline at St Tiernach’s Park, but the Glenties native says the build-up is much the same as what it was in the past.
“For me this feels exactly the same as the last one and that’s the truth.
“We have worked very hard and the boys have done everything that we have asked of them.
“They are still coming together and we are still developing the group.
“There are a lot of players that have gone through a longer term injury as well that haven’t been part of it up until this point so we are still not there yet and we are a work in progress to an extent and we are continuing to try and progress in competitions so those things don’t really affect the occasion.
“The occasion is going to be huge. It’s the biggest day in Ulster football and it’s the biggest championship of the four provinces so we just want to go there and embrace it and do our very, very best for the people of Donegal.”
Receive quality journalism wherever you are, on any device. Keep up to date from the comfort of your own home with a digital subscription.
Any time | Any place | Anywhere