Football

Donegal dealt huge blow with season-ending injury for McBrearty

DONEGAL’S hopes of a tilt at the All-Ireland have dealt an almighty blow with the news that Patrick McBrearty’s season is over.

Having gone off early in the second half of the Ulster final, the Kilcar man went for a scan yesterday which showed a torn ACL, which will require surgery and is likely to leave him sidelined until early next year at the least.

McBrearty had struggled with a quad injury at the tail end of the National League but had been in blistering form for the whole year either side of that, racking up 0-53 across league and championship.

His absence tears a huge hole in Donegal’s attack. Despite the form of the likes of youngsters Jamie Brennan and Michael Langan, there is no real natural successor to lead the front line in the way that McBrearty has this season.

After their comfortable win over Fermanagh in Sunday’s provincial final, Donegal will begin their Super 8 campaign against All-Ireland champions Dublin in Croke Park on the weekend of July 15.