McGuinness: 'People talk about year one – there is no such thing. It’s this year'

Sometimes in sport, it can feel like there is no tomorrow.

With 61 minutes gone at Croke Park on Sunday, Donegal and Galway were level.

For the tenth time, the scoreboard was even, 0-15 to 1-12, with Paul Conroy's fortuitous 24th minute goal the telling moment.

Donegal were derided as a beaten docket, barely worth tossing into the bookmakers' dustbin last year until Jim McGuinness returned.

Now, with 30,000 roaring them on they were within touching distance of an All-Ireland final.

When McGuinness took the job, on a three-year term that will have the option of a fourth, few would've foretold what year one would hold: Ulster champions, Division 2 winners and an All-Ireland semi-final spot.

That Galway, through Robert Finnerty and Liam Silke, found the match winners still stung hard.

The 2024 All-Ireland, with Dublin and Kerry gone to being spectators, appeared as open as any McGuinness has witnessed.

“People talk about year one – there is no such thing, there is no such thing,” McGuinness said.

“It’s this year. This was an opportunity this year and we had an opportunity and we felt we were in a really good position at half-time and felt if we kept it together, push it on for another 15 minutes we could potentially see the game out.

“It didn’t pan out for us that way and we have to take that on the chin, move on from it and take as many learnings from that as possible.”

Galway, managed by his old friend Pádraic Joyce, will go on to play Armagh in the final.

The year will go down as a successful one when they reflect, but in the instant moment there is no tomorrow.

“2024 was on the line today,” McGuinness said. “Armagh grasped that nettle yesterday and they’re in the final.

“We played them three times this year, we didn’t lose and good luck to them and good luck to Galway as well. I think it will be a really good final. So that’s it. You just have to take it on the chin and move on.

“Very proud of where they have come from and where they have got to and re-established Donegal in Division 1 and Ulster champions.”

McGuinness was clearly unhappy with referee Brendan Cawley at different stages of the afternoon, but the Donegal manager largely kept his counsel afterwards.

“There were a number (of decisions) that we weren't happy with,” he said. “In the first minute, Ryan McHugh was breaking through, had two men pulling at him and he was blown for over-carrying . . . I don't really want to go there; it is what it is.

“These games can be decided by one or two moments. We'll take it on the chin.”