The qualifiers seem like a daunting idea but if you take it one game at a time, you could be in Croke Park before you know it.
Last year, Mayo were stuttering and stammering. They were being written off and ignored everywhere when, suddenly, they took Dublin to two epic battles. Donegal's path could see them slipping under the radar nicely.
It was a tough lesson for Rory Gallagher's young troops to learn in the roasting hot Clones field two weeks ago. They had been going nicely in the league - exceeded all expectation - they wiped the floor with Antrim and they looked like the sort of side capable of hurting Tyrone.
In the end, it was men against boys - quite literally.
Now, they have to pick themselves up all over again but Donegal's path was discussed on
The GAA Hour and they could definitely come through the qualifiers with a pretty nice route. If they're lucky enough.
Round 2A
They play Longford on Saturday in Ballybofey. Although the Leinster side love nothing more than upsetting a northern powerhouse, it's a good game for the men from the hills to get back on track.
Round 3A
The winners of Round 2A play each other here so Donegal will have the pick of:
Meath/Sligo
Laois/Clare
Mayo/Derry
Avoid Mayo and Gallagher won't be too worried.
Round 4A
In the A section of the qualifiers, it's the losers of the Connacht and Munster finals that enter this side.
Presumably:
Roscommon
Cork
Donegal could therefore play Longford, Clare, Cork or Roscommon en route to the last eight.
When they get there, it could be the best draw they'd hope for too.
The 4A winners play the Connacht and Munster champions in the quarters. If Galway win Connacht, Mayo wouldn't be able to play them in the last eight - presuming Mayo make it that far too.
Donegal would therefore be assigned the Connacht champion automatically if Mayo join them in the quarters - which is the most likely scenario if both teams avoid one another in the next round.
That would see Donegal avoid Tyrone, Kerry and Dublin - the best they could ask for.
You would then be looking at something like this:
The key is avoiding Mayo in Round 3 though. And there's a 66.6% chance that they will.
Listen to the full discussion about Donegal's ability to bounce back on The GAA Hour below from 40:46.
