Donegal 0-16 Sligo 0-11
Sligo's senior footballers had their championship ambitions blasted away by a dominant Donegal side in the second round of the SFC qualifiers in Ballybofey.
The Yeats County proved no match for a re-invigorated Donegal side, who put in a comprehensive performance, banishing memories of their disastrous loss to Fermanagh. However, ten wides on the day, some from easy positions, suggests that Brian McEniff has work to do if he wants to bring his team further this year.
Sligo started the match at pace, and appeared content to kick from distance - unfortunately five wides in the first ten minutes hinted at the waywardness of the Sligo forward line that would proved costly later in the game. That said, first blood went to Sligo with Dessie Sloyan pointing the first of his five points on the day.
Donegal's reply came from Adrian Sweeney - the man who provided their scoring answers for most of the day. He scored five in the first half, with four of those from open play - and it was his kicking that maintained daylight between the teams.
Sligo had plenty of possession throughout the first half, but could not make it work, and increasingly, their midfield was stretched - into the gaps stepped the likes of Stephen McDermott and Colm McFadden, whose persistent running at the Sligo backs formed the backbone of the Donegal gameplan.
Two fine scores from McDermott, along with a John Hegarty free on 29 minutes, saw Donegal go in on a 0-8 to 0-6 lead at the interval. For their part, Sligo relied heavily on Sloyan, his three first half points, along with scores from Michael McNamara, Gerry McGowan and John McCartland, were enough to keep them in touch.
The second half, however, would prove to be a different story. From the outset the game tightened up - the chances came Sligo's way but they failed to convert. All the while, Donegal, and Sweeney in particular, diligently pointed - two from Sweeney, along with scores from McDermott and Hegarty again, were enough to maintain the their lead.
Sloyan continued to push for Sligo up front, but to little avail. Two scores from him, along with additional points from David Durkan, Kieran Quinn, formed the basis of their reply. As time passed by, however, Donegal began to assert their dominance in all areas of the field, and Sligo heads began to drop.
In the end, the youthful vigour of the Donegal side against their older Sligo counterparts, showed on the day. It may be suggested that the walls of Fortress Ballybofey have always taken some breaching, but ultimately this was a game as much lost by Sligo as won by Donegal. Both sides clocked up double figures in wides - the pin-point precision of Sweeney in the Donegal forward line being the key scoring difference.
Donegal's reliance on Sweeney, who finished the day with a tally of 0-7, may be worrying. If he doesn't perform in their next outing, McEniff's men could find themselves in a trickier situation.