A mouthwatering All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final on Sunday afternoon at Croke Park sees Donegal and Kerry lock horns for the right to lift Sam Maguire.
A generally held consensus concludes the provincial champions of Ulster and Munster respectively have emerged as the best two teams in the Championship, but only one can climb the steps of the Hogan Stand to raise the silverware.
They go head-to-head at HQ on Sunday afternoon (3.30pm) and our GAA expert is marking your card for the All-Ireland Final.
Selections
Donegal to run for the Hills with Sam Maguire
Donegal’s strategy under the newly implemented FRC rule changes has been to run hard and fast at their opponents.
Jim McGuinness has created a team of athletes in the form of players such as Peadar Mogan, Ciaran Moore, Finbarr Roarty and Ryan McHugh, with ample support around them.
They defend well but come forward in powerful swarms, running angles and lines that leave opponents frazzled trying to decipher where the threats will emerge from.
The two-point arc 40 metres from goal has opened a new scoring avenue, but Donegal are one of the teams that have largely resisted it. McGuinness’ side are much more likely to carry possession into the scoring zone, look for near interplays and easy scoring chances they can create, and take their simple scores.
It has served them well. Meath looked an emerging force, with wins over Dublin, Kerry and Galway, but Donegal made them look very ordinary in the semi-final and the ability to craft simple scoring chances by running intense lines was a major factor.
Kerry, of course, have David Clifford, a colossus of scoring power and now generally perceived as probably the greatest full-forward the game has ever seen.
The Fossa man scored 1-09 in the semi-final win over Tyrone and Donegal have to find a way to keep him relatively quiet.
He isn’t a one-man band. Jack O’Connor has Paudie Clifford, Sean O’Shea and Joe O’Connor as able deputies.
Kerry are peaking at just the right time, but the ceaseless athleticism of this Donegal side may see them coming up short in the last quarter.
Donegal’s second-half performances have been immense. Armagh folded from five points up in the second half against Kerry, allowing 13 unanswered points, while Tyrone never truly looked the equal of Kerry in the last-four.
Under McGuinness’ exceptional tutelage, the Donegal panel know they are the equal of any team. Their belief won’t be swayed and while a titanic struggle is expected, Kerry may be sunk by the relentless nature of the Ulster champions’ running power.
Moore’s goal threat under-rated
The return of Michael Murphy to the Donegal ranks has been a huge factor.
The 2012 All-Ireland winning captain brings a presence that is unmatched in Donegal colours and, despite two years in retirement and his 36th birthday looming, the Glenswilly man appears to be in immense physical condition.
Nonetheless, it’s the running ability of his foot soldiers that is likely to swing this final in Donegal’s favour, as Murphy orchestrates the band.
St Eunan’s ace Ciaran Moore has enjoyed moving from half-back to half-forward at times this season, though in truth it matters little what number he dons, given the engine that allows him to cover so much ground.
He has two goals in 10 Championship games so far this season. He might have had two in the semi-final win over Meath, but he opted to take an easy point late on with the game won when the goal was at his mercy.
When Donegal attack at pace, with short incisive movements, Moore’s ability to appear on the shoulder of the man in possession at pace allows him to get into great shooting positions and his confidence must be rocketing in front of goal.
He looks overpriced to find the net again.
