It’s a case of the boy who cried wolf with Donegal, and it’s unfortunate for them because I actually think they have a case this time. They’re the only team of the eight remaining being unfairly treated this weekend.
By all accounts it boiled down to Galway travelling to Newry last weekend, whereas Donegal had a home game.
With the Mayo game, there was little that could be done. There were limited venues available, and Roscommon wasn’t the end of the world.
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It’s tough now to go to Croke Park off the back of a six-day turnaround and be expected to perform.
In fairness, you could say that in the second half against Louth, Jim McGuinness was able to rest his players when they were comfortably leading, but you only get to rest five players.
I give Monaghan a serious chance here. I’ve been very impressed with them all year. Gabriel Bannigan has done a mighty job. His nephew Micheál has been exceptional.
He needs his key players here to perform on the day. Limiting Micheal Murphy will be key too. We saw how Louth and Dónal McKenny opted to deal with him, it was bordering on nasty at times. Maybe Monaghan will resort to something like that.
Aidan O’Mahony did something similar on him for Kerry. Is it fair? Probably not, but teams know they have to find a way to stop him.
I’ve seen Monaghan closely in certain games this year. They have players that I think that can match Donegal, particularly going down the stretch.
There’s certain teams that get in your face and Monaghan are one of them, even going back to 2007 when they should have beaten us.
There was only two points in it the last time with the hooter incident, and I think this will go right down to the wire. Rory Beggan and Shaun Patton in Croke Park, how fascinating will that be?
Picture by Seamus Loughran
Personally I’m not a fan of penalties, but I do think if there’s any game that might go all the way, it’s Monaghan v Donegal. I’m going for Donegal, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Monaghan do win.
For Dublin, it’s stating the obvious but so much depends on Con O’Callaghan. Tyrone have so much quality, you only have to look at the likes of Peter Harte coming in off the bench.
Dublin are certainly building, they’ve got minutes into John Small. Lee Gannon is back. Eoin Murchan is back. My God, that guy is like a Duracell battery the way he can go.
There were shades of his goal in the 2019 final against Kerry the way he was moving against Cork.
So is he the guy to take Darragh Canavan? Possibly, but it could fall to Davy Byrne.
Canavan hasn’t set the world on fire either. I thought maybe he could move Brendan McCole around and McCole did brilliantly on him.
I marked Darren McCurry in 2012. He was a tough bit of stuff, particularly if he got a point off you at all, his gander was up, and with that confidence he can be so damaging.
Which takes us to the midfield battle. It will be fascinating.
I was watching Peadar Ó’Cofaigh Byrne against Colm O’Callaghan and Ian Maguire. They were actually taking turns at him.
There was one high ball in particular where Ó’Cofaigh Byrne just stood there, used his physicality, held off O’Callaghan, who’s a beast, an absolute beast, and he was able to keep him at arm’s length.
Tyrone are going to be clever. They have to be. They’re going to have fellas wing forwards, coming in, crashing off Ó’Cofaigh Byrne.
Brian Kennedy and Conn Kilpatrick are well cut out for it, but they’re brilliant players too with their own scoring threat. It could be like the film Troy, that scene where the two leaders come together and say: “We’ll settle this the old way. We get your best warrior and my best warrior out”.
Brad Pitt plays Achilles, and he comes out and obliterates the big guy, David v Goliath stuff, so maybe there’s someone who can play that role!
But it’s not just Ó’Cofaigh Byrne.
Brian Howard is always an outlet but it was Ciarán Kilkenny who impressed me on the wing the last day. He was palming kickouts down for runners but he can also break it down for himself.
I think Tyrone will get goal scoring opportunities, but they have to take them. Stephen Cluxton comes out fast and makes himself big, I think you have to keep it low and slot it under him. So many shots hit his chest and his arms.
Or look at how Shane Walsh cut in and finished that goal against Down, even with Ronan Burns pulling off two brilliant saves. I think Galway are coming good at the right time. I think they beat Meath, but Meath can really squeeze Conor Flaherty.
The forwards they have are frightening, there’s real competition with Damien Comer to come back in if he’s fit, and young Matthew Thompson has been incredible.
Walsh is in my top four for Footballer of the Year, as well as David Clifford, Michael Murphy and Ross McQuillan. Ethan Rafferty is a dark horse if you can call him that.
My head tells me Armagh v Kerry is going to take a similar course to last year.
Kerry are really struggling in the middle of the field department minus the services of Barry Dan O’Sullivan, and Diarmuid O’Connor. They’re really struggling, and the word down in Kerry is that Jack Barry is back in the panel. He’s home from Australia.
I’m not so sure if that’s true, but that’s the rumour down here. We’ve seen John Small for Dublin in from the wilderness, but it can take six, seven weeks to get up to speed.
Not be be unfair on Mark O’Shea or Seán O’Brien, but if you said earlier this year that would be a starting pairing at midfield in knockout Championship people would have said you’re living in cuckoo land.
Ben Crealey’s been quietly brilliant. Niall Grimley is back, he’s got real class.
Armagh have a bench they can call on. Kerry don’t. That’s the difference here. If it does go to extra-time again, it’s bye-bye for Kerry.
When you have the Cliffords and Seán O’Shea, you always have a chance. Kerry need a big game from Seánie.
I’d expect Barry McCambridge to take David, and it’s around this time last year McCambridge’s form really picked up.
I’d say Jack O’Connor reads a lot, and he wasn’t best pleased with my brother Darragh’s comments. A lot of people in Kerry would be thinking that maybe Jack hasn’t blooded enough young players, and I think that was a fair assessment by Darragh.
Objectively, there was merit in it, and though Kerry have a good chance, there’s too many ifs and maybes for me.
I’m going for a last four of Armagh, Galway, Tyrone and Donegal.
