IT has been an incredible season for Finnbarr Roarty and his hunger for success shows no signs of waning.
Over the last 12 months, Roarty has managed to establish himself as a Donegal regular, claim an Ulster SFC medal, help his county reach the All-Ireland Final before going on to win an All Star and Young Footballer of the Year.
His club triumphs can’t be forgotten either as he picked up his first senior championship medal with Naomh Conaill, and was named as the 2025 recipient of the Gradam Shéamuis Mhic Géidigh for Player of the Championship.
The mantelpiece in the Roarty household is starting to feel claustrophobic, and the 19-year-old collected another piece of silverware this week as he picked up the Donegal News May Sports Personality of the Month award in conjunction with Brian McCormick Sports & Leisure.
Roarty was recognised for his indefatigable performance in his first Ulster Senior Final against Armagh.
Most of his teammates had tasted provincial glory before but it was a huge occasion for Roarty and he backed it up with a superb display.
And he played a vital role in the closing seconds as he kept the ball with Stephen McMenamin by the sideline as a ravenous Armagh side tried with all their might to win possession back.
They couldn’t manage to do so and the fans in green and gold were soon vacating the terraces to celebrate with the team after a 2-23 to 0-28 win.
“It was class at the time. A great feeling,” said Roarty.
“It’s just brilliant to win any trophy with your county.
“It was a tough game and it had a bit of everything.
“We were up by seven and then they came back and took it to extra-time and then we were behind for a bit.
“Anything that could happen, seemed to happen in that game so it was a really memorable one for us.”
Less than two weeks before the senior final, Roarty was part of the Donegal Under 20 side that were unfortunate to lose the Ulster Final against Tyrone.
It would have been hard to stomach another provincial decider defeat and there was huge pressure in front of a sold-out Clones.
Roarty admits that he didn’t sleep great in the lead-up to the match but that certainly didn’t have a detrimental impact on his performance.
“I do get nervous.
“I get very nervous sometimes.
“But sometimes if you’re not nervous, you’re not as focused as you can be.
“I find the wee bit of nerves helps me.”
Donegal went all the way to the All-Ireland Final and while there was immense disappointment with the defeat to Kerry, Roarty looks back positively on the experience.
“It was a class season and we had the whole county behind us.
“It was a brilliant set-up to be a part of – the team itself and the backroom team and everyone who was involved.
“It was a bit of a dream so hopefully things keep going the right way and we can keep winning.”
Roarty has been busy with the Under 21 Championship in recent weeks but the Donegal team are now permitted to return to training.
He was away on the team holiday to Mexico but there has been no extended period to switch off and recharge the batteries. He’s taking it all in his stride at present.
“There’s no real break but that’s what you’re dealing with if you want to keep going and improve on that standard.
“I’m sure I’ll get a break at some stage but for now I’m happy to keep going.
“There’s definitely a quality team there and we have young players looking to get in and it will be good to see how they get on at training.
“Some boys had trouble with injuries like ‘Big John’ (Caolan McGonagle) so it would be good for him if he could get an injury-free season.
“Everyone will be pushing hard for a place in the team and that’s good.”
Roarty scored a goal off his weaker right foot as Naomh Conaill defeated Termon in incessant rain in the Under 21 semi-final last week.
That sets up a county final against Four Masters and Roarty is eagerly awaiting the duel on Sunday.
“It was really tough conditions against Termon. It wasn’t just the heavy pitch. You had wind and rain there but we dogged it out.
“I think some people thought I didn’t mean the goal but I think I’m the only one who really knows the answer to that! I’ll take it anyway.
“It’s going to be a massive challenge for us in the final.
“We know all about Four Masters and they know all about us.
“They are the reigning champions at Under 21s and nearly all the underage championships.
“We had a very good minor final with them last year. I think they won by two or three in the end but it could have gone either way.
“They just had that wee bit of composure then but it’s another final for us to look forward to and a great opponent to come up against.”
