Shane O’Donnell, a key player for Donegal and St Eunan’s, shone brightly yesterday as Donegal completed a remarkable comeback victory against Monaghan.
Overcoming a seven-point deficit, they secured a six-point win in what was arguably one of the finest second-half performances in Donegal’s football history.
This victory secures their place in the All-Ireland Semi-Final in two weeks. A potential opponent could be Tyrone, the only team to have defeated Jim McGuinness’ Donegal side in the 2025 Championship thus far.
O’Donnell’s hard work and impressive three-point contribution earned him the Man of the Match award, but for him, team success was the priority.
“Individual awards aren’t really what I’m aiming for. I just try to play my best for the team and get the result we need. If scores come, they come, but I wouldn’t be disappointed if they don’t, as I don’t usually score that often.”
“So, it’s always a good day when I get a score or two, and I’m happy with my performance and the performance of everyone else.”
Speaking to the media after receiving the award, he explained his decision to back himself when Donegal were under pressure.
“I think we were down by six or seven at that point, so I decided to back myself, because I probably don’t do it enough.”
“I was happy to see it go over the bar, and that gave me a bit of confidence to go on and score a few more in the second half. I probably need to back myself more to get on the scoreboard.”
“It was a bit of a shock to the system. We knew it would be tight and intense, but we wouldn’t have liked to be going in at half-time (seven) down. But we had a big wake-up call and came out firing.”
Regarding the demanding schedule Donegal has faced, O’Donnell credited the team’s strong second-half response.
“We always knew it would be a big task with games week on week. It’s tough physically and mentally on the bodies, but we responded well in the second half and got over the line, which was the main thing.”
“It’ll be a big two weeks, and we’ll put our heads down once we get home.”
Shane O’Donnell carrying “confidence” after Man of the Match performance was last modified: June 29th, 2025 by
