Senior Football Challenge:Donegal 2-12 Roscommon 2-6
Jimmy’s winning matches... again. The returned Donegal boss gave debuts to six players as a pretty new-look Tír Chonaill got the better of Roscommon before a big crowd at a charity match in the refurbished Fr Tierney Park, Ballyshannon on Sunday
This was the first match on the excellent surface and McGuinness gave first starts to Kevin McGettigan, Oisin Caulfield and Ciarna Moore with Ronan Frain, Seanan Carr and Sean Martin coming into the fray in the second half.
And the influential Shane O’Donnell, who did not feature last season, was back as a starter and hit 0-2 from play.
The six-point margin did not flatter the winners, who led by 0-9 to 0-2 in a wind-assisted opening half.
Roscommon did manage to hit two goals after the break from Conor Cox and Donie Smith from a penalty-but Donegal replied in kind from Jamie Brennan and Ronan Frain.
But McGuinness’s men never looked in any real danger. Oisin Gallen was in fine from and led from the front and finished with an impressive tally of 0-5 over the hour.
The home side dominated the first half with Gallen very prominent with strong support from the hard running Peadar Mogan.
Gallen hit 0-3 in the opening half with Mogan, the returned Shane O’Donnell, Daire O’Baoill and another returnee Aaron Doherty getting the rest of the scores.
Roscommon were struggling to cope with the wind and the rain and could only manage a total of two points-both coming from the boot of Diarmuid Murtagh.
They fared a bit better on the resumption, with Kerry native Cox rattling in a smart 1-1 as Oisin Caulfield replied for Donegal.
But the key score came in the 42nd minute when the beavering Jamie Brennan latched on to a perceptive pass from Caulfield and gave Rossie keeper Conor Carroll no chance.
Brennan’s belter put Donegal into a 1-10 to 1-4 lead which looked pretty insurmountable.
To their credit, Roscommon continued to battle but did not find the net until the 55th minute when Donie Smith coolly converted a penalty after Adam McDemott was brought down in the square.
Donegal were not quite finished yet and completed the match with a Frain goal that skittered into the net via the post in the dying minutes.
Donegal: S Patton; M Curran, B McCole, K McGettigan; P Mogan (0-2), E B Gallagher, C Moore; O Caulfield (0-1), M Langan; S O’Donnell (0-2) O Doherty, Dáire Ó Baoill (0-1); Aaron Doherty (0-1,mark), O Gallen (0-5, 0-3 frees) J Brennan (1-0)
Subs: J Mac Ceallabhui and R Frain (1-0) for O Doherty and A Doherty (46); S Martin for D O Baoill (50); S Carr for J Brennan (58); J R Molloy for K McGettigan (60); R O’Donnell for O Caulfield (61); Philip Doherty for P Mogan (66)
Roscommon: C Carroll; D Murray, E Flynn, N Higgins; N Daly, C Hussey, S Lambe; D Ruane, E McCormack; D Cregg, C Lennon, J Fitzpatrick; C Connolly, C Cox (1-2) D Murtagh (0-4,0-2 frees) Subs: K Doyle for S Lambe (h-time); A McDermott for J Fitzpatrick (41); C Walsh for N Daly (49); D Smith (1-0,pen) for C Connolly (51); P Gavin for N Higgins (54); R Daly for C Lennon (54); L Glennon for D Murray (60); N Higgins for D Murray (68) Referee: N Cullen (Fermanagh)