BY RYAN FERRY

DONEGAL defender Eoghan ‘Ban’ Gallagher says there will be no excuses if his team fall short on Sunday against Tyrone.

Gallagher and his teammates have won the last two Ulster Championships in impressive fashion but have struggled to make an impact at national level.

Lady luck has appeared to abandon them at crucial periods over the last two years.

Patrick McBrearty got injured in 2018, and Gallagher was one of three defenders to miss out last season for the latter stages of the ‘Super Eights’ when Donegal were beaten by Mayo in Castlebar.

This year they find themselves with a blockbuster of a knock-out clash with Tyrone in the Ulster Championship quarter-final, and the players could be forgiven for thinking that they can’t catch a break.

However, Gallagher doesn’t buy into that theory and he feels you need strength in numbers to deal with whatever comes your way.

“I don’t think so, it’s just part and parcel of sport that the last two years we’ve picked up injuries. Paddy in 2018 and then we had three or four injuries going into the Kerry game, and then a few more going into the Mayo game, but that’s part and parcel of sport.

“It could have a huge bearing on this championship so there’s no excuses in relation to that. It’s up to us to perform on Sunday and try to get the result.

“There’s no excuses from ourselves. We’ve had time to develop a squad, I felt we’ve done that the last number of years. If it so happens we pick up injuries again, there’s a squad to rally around and make the most out of it.”

Gallagher has been one of Donegal’s most reliable players since he first broke through in 2016, and he can match disciplined defending with powerful bursts up the field.

He concedes that the broken ankle he encountered in training last year was difficult to recover from both physically and mentally.

The Killybegs man didn’t feature in the McKenna Cup, but he was back for the start of the league.

Gallagher felt he wasn’t at his best in the spring, but Declan Bonner trusted him and gave him difficult marking assignments against All Star forwards in Shane Walsh (Galway) and Paul Mannion (Dublin)

“I felt when I was back and playing in the National League, I wasn’t just back yet. Declan showed good faith in me to keep me in playing games, but I felt I had a lot of work to do myself over the period of lockdown, just to get a few wee things and niggles right and come back stronger.

“I’ve done that over the period, I definitely had a lot of things to work on and I’m happy with the way I used the time. I think a lot of the fellas on our team were happy with how they used it.”

Gallagher also enjoyed a spot of reading during the break, and is willing to shoulder more responsibility.

He was one of the star players in the Donegal minor team that reached the All-Ireland Final in 2014.However, he is 24 now and appreciates that the younger generation can’t rely on the older guard to provide all the leadership.

“I read a few books during the lockdown. It was not something I would normally do.

“A lot of the best teams like Liverpool, the New Zealand rugby team, they all talk about the collective responsibility even the Leinster rugby team, and they hadn’t lost a game for a number of years and they all talk about the collective responsibility.

“It is up to everybody now to take responsibility and we cannot always look to Michael (Murphy), Neil McGee, Ryan McHugh and Paddy McBrearty to lead us.

Gallagher admits that it has been a different build-up to the championship this year.

There isn’t the same craic and buzz about with the team either as they aren’t spending as much time together, and everyone is concerned about Covid-19.

However, Gallagher stressed that he is happy to get the opportunity to put on the green and gold shirt, and has adapted to the regulations like everyone else.

“I suppose it’s very strange, you’re used to spending time before and after training, mingling and chatting, and having the general craic within the squad.

“That’s kind of gone.”