Bradley needed dedication to Donegal

Donegal’s Ryan Bradley

DONEGAL’S meteoric rise over the past 18 months has helped make household names out of a number of their players. It’s proof if it was needed that although it’s all about the collective effort for Jim McGuinness’s men, there still remains ample opportunity for individuals to express themselves and to seize their opportunity.

One such player is attacker Ryan Bradley, a string of impressive displays in their half-forward berth have propelled him into the limelight, and the 26 year old has proven himself to be a key component of the green and gold match-winning machine.

While the sort of work carried out by such workhorses as Brian Dooher may have been at best unnoticed and at worst ridiculed in the past, there is a growing acknowledgement that hard-running players like Bradley are now key to the prospects of any side hoping to experience success or to win silverware in the modern game.

Trying to explain or describe Bradley’s role in the team is a tricky task. He’s part of a Donegal set-up where jersey numbers and traditional formations count for precious little. It’s easier just to say that, like his colleagues, his job is to do whatever it is that needs to be done most at that particular point in time, as Bradley himself agrees.

“It’s hard to pin down alright. There are times you’re working around the midfield and right across the half-forward line to win ball.

“You’re working up and down the field, tracking back and tackling to help the defence, and then getting forward to support the attack, whether you’re on the ball or making up the numbers. Put simply, it’s just about doing whatever you need to do to best help the team at that particular point in time.”

The full story is in the current issue of Gaelic Life, published on Thursday September 6. Buy your copy now in your local newsagent, or you can purchase the online version – for only 90p – by clicking here