IN this year’s League encounter between Armagh and Cavan, the Breffni Blues dished out a 17-point hiding to their opponents en route to promotion and the Division Two final.
On the face of it Kieran McGeeney’s men have, accordingly, a fair bit of work to do in order to get closer to Terry Hyland’s resurgent Cavan.
However, as former Armagh ace Steven McDonnell knows well, there is previous in this regard.
In March of the 2004 League season, Armagh travelled to Kingspan Breffni Park and were on the wrong end of a 13-point beating.
Just over three months later, the two met again, Armagh emerged as two point winners, and would later lift the Anglo-Celt Cup after trouncing Donegal in the final.
Twelve years later it appears clear enough that the two teams are heading in different directions.
Armagh went straight back to Division Three while Cavan will mix it with the League elite in 2017.
But that’s the League and this Sunday is the Championship. Whatever about that hammering in March, McDonnell is confident that what would be a minor upset “can be done”.
“On current form Cavan are the team that gained promotion while Armagh got relegated and all the, I suppose, favourite tags would point it directly towards Cavan,” said McDonnell.
“But that’s something that they haven’t taken favourably to over the last couple of years.
“I don’t think Cavan will have it nearly as easy as they had it in the League encounter.
“And let’s be honest, the League in comparison to Ulster Championship matches – there’s a difference of night and day – and I do believe that Armagh will be better prepared and better set up.”
Cavan came unstuck last month in the divisional final against Tyrone and are arguably a little way from challenging for an Ulster title this season.
McDonnell feels that that reversal for the Breffni men may be a negative from Armagh’s point of view in that it demonstrated to Cavan that “they have plenty of work to do”.
There is undoubtedly a job of work for McGeeney to do also to lift spirits among, not only his players, but Armagh supporters.
When asked what he considers what the current crop of Orchard players do well, the Killeavy man outlined that he sees, bar some obviously more experienced campaigners, a team with a number of impressive performers who are still learning their trade at county level.
“First of all they utilise the strength that they have in terms of having ‘Soupy’ [Stefan] Campbell up front,” he said.
“I wouldn’t like to see if he picked up an injury because he’s a vitally important player to Armagh.
“But what Armagh do have in abundance, and I have experienced it over the last couple of years managing the U21s, is that they’ve got good fresh legs, they’ve got youth on their side and the capabilities that those guys have is immense.
“There are players who have stepped up in the League campaign. They had a couple of horrendous results – Laois and Cavan being the two main ones.
“But they had a couple of decent performances as well and the likes of Miceal McKenna showed consistent form throughout the League campaign.
“Ethan Rafferty is starting to come into his own a wee bit more as well. They have a young team – they are learning and they have to learn a lot as they go on.
“[It’s about] if they can just go and express themselves as players because I know with having worked with them they’re capable.
“It’s just a matter of going out and believing a wee bit more in themselves.”
