DONEGAL'S CUP OF TEA

Players and fans alike will be relishing McGuinness' return to Tir Chonaill job

- KARL O’KANE

JIM McGUINNESS’ second coming as Donegal boss was rubber-stamped at a specially convened county board meeting last night.

Chiefs were due to gather in a fortnight but that was brought forward with the only item on the agenda the senior football manager appointment.

The 2012 All-Ireland winning boss’ return to the hotseat is proving hugely popular locally, particularly with Donegal at a low ebb.

And it has certainly piqued interest in Derry, Monaghan, Armagh and Tyrone with Ulster set to become even more competitive while Down are on the rise under Conor Laverty.

When McGuinness, 50, took the Donegal reins in late 2010 after leading the county to the All-Ireland under-21 final, he set his crosshairs on Tyrone – the leading light in Ulster at the time.

McGuinness’ theory was that you had to get on top in your province before you could talk about achieving anything nationally.