After Donegal were paired with Kerry in Round 1 of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Ryan Ferry looks at some of the issues Donegal will have to address over the next fortnight.
1. Can Donegal use the break effectively?
This season will throwback to a bygone era for Donegal with long breaks in between games.
Donegal had four weeks from the league final to the Down match and now it will be another four before they take on Kerry.
Jim McGuinness was always good at managing those breaks in his first stint in charge and he will look to tap into that once again.
The Glenties man said after the defeat to Down that his team looked ‘leggy’ and he will try to get the players who haven’t played much this year such as Ciaran Moore, Oisin Gallen and Daire Ó Baoill up to speed.
He will want his men fresh and firing although the travel to the other side of the country will be a headache.
Kerry are unlikely to train hard in the lead up to the Munster Final on Sunday so that is a possible advantage, and Donegal will be hoping that Cork push their rivals hard regardless of the outcome. Extra-time would be welcomed in this part of the world.
The Kingdom will have match sharpness and Donegal will surely try and get a challenge game or two to help their cause.
It’s unlikely that a phone call would be made to Tyrone but the likes of Meath and Mayo will have similar lay-offs to Donegal.
Last year, the Red Hands benefitted from a four-week break in the All-Ireland Series when they came to Ballybofey as Donegal struggled to get to the right level after their provincial win.
They’ll be hoping to turn the tables on that one this time.
2. Can Donegal deal with the cauldron?
Fitzgerald Stadium is an excellent ground where Kerry have a strong record, and there’s sure to be a huge crowd at this match as it is a repeat of the All-Ireland Final.
The Munster Championship doesn’t carry the same allure anymore and the Kingdom could win their 87th provincial title this weekend.
However, the sight of an Ulster team heading south will get the juices flowing again.
And the League Final will definitely be a factor. Kerry were humiliated in that match and it won’t have sat well.
Jack O’Connor was sore in his post-match interview that evening in Croke Park and they will be gunning for Donegal.
The Michael Murphy incident with Dylan Casey will come back into the spotlight.
Kerry players were not short of physicality in Ballyshannon or Croke Park but were called out by Darragh Ó Se in the Irish Times in the fall-out from the Division 1 decider.
Ó Se wrote: “If I was one of Casey’s teammates, I wouldn’t want to hear a word about David Gough or Conor Lane or disciplinary committees or anything like that. I’d be looking in the mirror.
“Murphy should have been dealt with there and then, on the pitch. Great fella, brilliant footballer, whatever. A box in the jaw is a box in the jaw and you can’t be a team who lets that slide.
“Murphy needed to be reminded of that and if it meant a Kerry player taking a card, so be it. But nobody said boo to him, never mind gave him a clipping.”
The Glenswilly man will probably receive a hostile reception but the four-time All Star is an experienced campaigner.
Fitzgerald Stadium could be like a cauldron and Donegal will need cool heads.
3. Will Shane Ryan be fit?
There are injury concerns for both teams at the moment.
Michael Langan didn’t feature for Donegal in their last game against Down.
McGuinness said he had just rolled his ankle and Donegal fans will be hoping he is fit for the trip to Killarney.
Kerry have picked up a few injuries since the league and Sean O’Shea, Joe O’Connor, Graham O’Sullivan, Dylan Geaney and Brian Ó Beaglaoich didn’t feature against Clare two weeks ago while Tom O’Sullivan went off injured.
Paudie Clifford, Diarmuid O’Connor and Gavin White are back fit and it’s likely that some of the others will feature against Cork in the Munster Final on Sunday.
Kerry traditionally announce their starting team on Thursday evening and the name Donegal will look out for more than any other this week is Shane Ryan.
The All-Star goalkeeper hasn’t featured since the McGrath Cup and he is revered for his ability to get short kick-outs away off either foot.
In the League Final, Ryan’s deputy Shane Murphy struggled badly and Donegal cleaned up on his long kick-outs.
If Ryan is fit for the first round of the All-Ireland Series, it will pose a very different threat to Donegal.
4. Would defeat be fatal?
It’s not a knock-out game so defeat wouldn’t be fatal for either side.
There will be a chance to bounce back in Round 2B.
It would be a blow to Donegal to lose two matches on the spin and their early season momentum would undoubtedly take a hit.
However, after beating Kerry twice this year they will feel that they can make it a hat-trick in Killarney.
Defeat wouldn’t be totally disastrous, although it does appear favourable to stay on the winners’ pathway.
Two victories will send teams through to the quarter-final and there will be good breaks in between.
Whereas the side that lose in Round 1 will have to wait until June 13/14 to play again and would have to win three matches in successive weekends to reach the All-Ireland semi-finals.
It has been shown before that Donegal are vulnerable when playing back-to-back so they will want to keep control of their calendar.