The Donegal county hurling team represents

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

and is governed by Donegal GAA, the

county board A county board is a common form of county legislature, particular of counties in the United States. Related forms of county government include: * Board of Supervisors — a form of county legislature in some U.S. states * County commission, ...

of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the Nicky Rackard Cup and the

National Hurling League The National Hurling League is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition featuring teams from Ireland and England. Founded in 1925 by the Gaelic Athletic Association, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation within the l ...

(currently Division 2B, often also in Division 3A). Donegal's home ground is MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey. The team's manager is

Mickey McCann Michael "Mickey" McCann is an Irish hurling manager and former player. He currently manages the Donegal county team and plays as goalkeeper for Burt. He played when Donegal won the 2011 Lory Meagher Cup and scored a point in the final at Crok ...

. The team last won the Ulster Senior Championship in 1932, but has never won the All-Ireland Senior Championship or the National League.

History

Donegal has three senior and four junior Ulster hurling titles, the last senior win coming in 1932. Donegal has a residue of pre-GAA hurling. The Burt Hibernians brought Donegal the 1906 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, defeating Antrim by 25 points to one. Burt later played in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

. In 1923 Donegal fielded a team of three natives augmented with Gardaí and customs officers from hurling counties to win its second Ulster SHC. When they lined out for the semi-final, wearing blue jerseys against Limerick on a cold, miserable day in

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...

, numbers were worn by the players for the first time to help the spectators to distinguish them. The team trailed 5–4 to nil at half-time and lost 7–4 to 0–1. Donegal was

Division Three champion in 2001. Led by Eamon Campbell, Donegal reached the final of the

2006 Nicky Rackard Cup The 2006 Nicky Rackard Cup was the 2006 campaign of the Nicky Rackard Cup and began on Saturday June 10, 2006. 2006 was the second time this new element of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was introduced. It was devised by the Hurl ...

, the first time the team had achieved this, only to be defeated by

. The county reached the final of the

2009 Lory Meagher Cup The 2009 Lory Meagher Cup was the inaugural fourth-tier hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. Seven county teams and one regional team took part in the competition. The teams were Warwickshire, Longford, Fermanagh, Leit ...

, only to be defeated by Tyrone. Donegal won the

2011 Lory Meagher Cup The 2011 Lory Meagher Cup was the 3rd annual fourth-tier hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. The teams competing were: * Longford * Donegal * Tyrone * South Down * Leitrim * Fermanagh * Cavan * Warwickshire The w ...

Ray Durack Ray Durack is an Irish hurling manager and former player. He is originally from Portumna, County Galway. He formerly played for and later managed the Donegal county team, serving in that role from January 2012 until announcing his departure i ...

was manager of the county team from January 2012 until May 2015. He led Donegal to the

2013 Nicky Rackard Cup The 2013 season was the ninth staging of the Nicky Rackard Cup. Donegal were the 2013 Champions, defeating Roscommon in the final. However, they were not promoted to the 2014 Christy Ring Cup due to a restructuring of the competition. - interview w ...

. As Nicky Rackard winners, Donegal would have expected to compete in the

2014 Christy Ring Cup The 2014 Christy Ring Cup was the tenth staging of the Christy Ring Cup hurling championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 2005. The cup competition began on 3 May 2014 and ended on 7 June 2014. Down were the def ...

. However, due to restructure of the competitions, Donegal were not promoted to the 2014 Christy Ring Cup. Durack then brought the county to Division 2B of the

in 2014 (their highest league ranking in team history).

Ardal McDermott Ardal McDermott is an Irish hurling manager and former player. He formerly played for and later managed the Donegal county team. His club is Burt. McDermott played for the full final of the 2011 Lory Meagher Cup, which Donegal won at Croke Par ...

succeeded Durack as manager, serving between 2015 and 2017 and leading the county back to Division 2B of the

in 2017 (as Division 3A champions), after the team were relegated the previous year.https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/davin-flynn-hits-2-8-as-donegal-take-division-3a-title-35585198.html

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

On 25 October 2017, the county board announced

's appointment as senior manager on a two-year contract, with the possibility of a third year in charge also mentioned. The county board had specifically identified him after all candidates nominated for the position were rejected as unsuitable. McCann led Donegal to first competitive victories over Derry and Down in the

2018 National Hurling League The 2018 National Hurling League was the 87th season of the National Hurling League for county teams. Wexford finished top of Division 1B in 2017 and were promoted to Division 1A for 2018. Galway finished second in Division 1B in 2017 and so mi ...

. The

2018 Nicky Rackard Cup The 2018 Nicky Rackard Cup was the 14th staging of the Nicky Rackard Cup hurling championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 2005. It was the fourth tier of senior inter-county hurling as of 2018. The competition b ...

followed. Relegation from 2B to 3A followed in 2019, promotion to 2B followed in 2020. Donegal defeated Mayo in the

2020 Nicky Rackard Cup Final The 2020 Nicky Rackard Cup Final was played at Croke Park in Dublin on 22 November 2020. It was contested by Donegal and Mayo. Donegal won the competition for a third time, becoming the first team to achieve this. Mickey McCann was manager. S ...

; in doing so, the county became the first to win the competition on three occasions. However, the 2020 win did not secure passage back to the

2021 Christy Ring Cup The 2021 Christy Ring Cup was the 17th staging of the Christy Ring Cup since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 2005. The cup began on 26 June 2021 and ended on 1 August 2021. The final was played on 1 August 2021 at Croke P ...

, a condition that was not made clear until shortly before the final.

Current panel

Recent players include: 2013 captain: Joe Boyle 2014 captain: Joe Boyle *

Declan Coulter Declan Coulter (born 1987/8) is a hurler. He plays for Setanta, the Donegal county team and the Ireland national team. Coulter previously played for Cuchulainn's and the Armagh county team. Playing career Coulter made his inter-county deb ...

Danny Cullen Danny Cullen (born 1987/8) is a hurler. He plays for Setanta, the Donegal county team and the Ireland national team. He has won three Nicky Rackard Cups and represented Ireland against Scotland in the Shinty-Hurling International Series ...

(

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

until 2020) *

Seán McVeigh Seán McVeigh (born 1990/91) is a dual player. He plays Gaelic football for St Eunan's, as well as, formerly, hurling for the Donegal county team. McVeigh is from Letterkenny. He made his inter-county debut at the age of 16, away to Longford ...

(2020

); retired after 2022 * Conor Parke

Current management team

:''As announced on 25 October 2017'': *

Manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

* Trainer/

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

: Gabriel O'Kane * Another selector yet to be confirmed * Backroom team: Martin McGrath, Martin Coyle

Managerial history

* 1906–200?: ? * 2005: Darren McDermott (player-manager) * 2006–2009: Eamon Campbell **Campbell died on 7 June 2022. * 2010–2011: Andrew Wallace * 2012–2015:

* 2015–2017:

* 2017–present:

Players

Notable players

All Stars

; Nicky Rackard Cup All Star Awards * 2006 –

(Setanta), Aiden Begley (Aodh Ruadh) * 2007 – Ger O'Dwyer (Setanta) * 2008 –

(Burt) * 2012 –

(Burt), Lee Henderson (Seán MacCumhaills) * 2013 – Christy McDermott (Burt),

(Setanta),

(St Eunan's), Lee Henderson (Seán MacCumhaills) * 2014 – Justin McGee (Sean MacCumhaills), Paul Sheridan * 2015 – Ronan McDermott (Burt),

Jamesie Donnelly Jamesie Donnelly is a hurler. He plays for Seán Mac Cumhaills and, formerly, the Donegal county team. He won the 2011 Lory Meagher Cup with his county, starting and completing the final. He won the 2013 Nicky Rackard Cup, starting and comp ...

(Seán MacCumhaills) * 2016 –

(Setanta), Pádraig Doherty (Burt) * 2018 –

(Setanta), Stephen Gillespie ; Lory Meagher Cup All Star Awards * 2009 –

(Seán MacCumhaills) * 2010 – Paul O'Brien (Burt), Mark Patton (Four Masters),

(Burt) * 2011 – Enda McDermott (Burt), Joe Boyle (Burt), Niall Campbell (Burt), Colm Breathnach (St Eunan's) ;Champions 15 * 2020 –

(Setanta),

(St Eunan's) * 2023 – Luke White (Carndonagh),

(Setanta) ;Nicky Rackard Cup Player of the Year * 2018 –

(Setanta) * 2020 –

(Setanta)

Player of the Year

* 2013

* 2015 Ronan McDermott * 2017 Davin Flynn * 2018 Padraic Doherty (Burt) * 2019 Jack O'Loughlin (Buncrana)

Honours

:''Official honours, with additions noted.''

National

* Nicky Rackard Cup ** Winners (3):

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

** Runners-up (3): 2001, 2003,

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

* Lory Meagher Cup ** Winners (1):

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

** Runners-up (2):

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

** Winners (1): Division 3:

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

** Winners (1): Division 3A:

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

Provincial

* Ulster Senior Hurling Championship ** Winners (3): 1906, 1923, 1932 ** Runners-up (10): 1903, 1910, 1924, 1925, 1929, 1933, 1934, 1937, 1938, 1945 *

Ulster Senior Hurling Shield Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

** Winners (1):

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

* Ulster Junior Hurling Championship ** Winners (6): 1947, 1948, 1972, 1989, 2001, 2003 *

Conor McGurk Cup The Conor McGurk Cup is an annual hurling competition organised by the Ulster GAA, Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association. It has been held annually since 2018. The series of games are played during January. The McGurk Cup is effectiv ...

** Winners (2): 2023 ** Runners-up (3): 2022