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12th Jul 2013

Eircom Football Championship Preview

After getting four out of five right last week, let's see how JOE, and the eircom ambassadors, get on this week.

JOE

After getting four out of five right last week, let’s see how JOE, and the eircom ambassadors, get on this week.

Only for Derry turning the tables on Down last weekend, we would have nabbed a perfect score on eircom’s Win, Lose or Draw game, but we’ll take an 80 per cent return any day of the week.

With five more games down for decision this week, including a Leinster final and four more qualifiers, here’s how we, and the eircom ambassadors reckon the weekend will go.

To join in on the fun via the experience more website, click on this link, enter the code CTYVG and you’ll soon be going head to head with the big (and not so big) dogs.

Now, without further ado and with the usual expert insight from our high-profile eircom ambassadors, here’s how we think this weekend’s games are going to go down.

Dublin v Meath

Dublin were simply awesome in the Leinster semi-final as they blew away Kildare. They scored 4-16 and could have had four or five more goals. They could afford to take off Bernard Brogan with 20 minutes to go and Kevin McManamon came on and scored a goal too. They looked unbeatable.

But Meath, of all the teams in the world, always feel they have a chance against Dublin at Croker and it is only three years since they turned the Metropolitans over. An awful lot has changed, for both counties, since then but Meath will genuinely believe they have a shot

Against Wexford they won thanks chiefly to the free-taking expertise of Mickey Newman so if Dublin are undisciplined, he will punish them. Add in Graham Reilly’s undoubted class in the forwards and you couldn’t rule them out completely.

That said, we believe the Dubs just have too much power and pace all over the pitch, and on the bench, to be denied on Sunday.

Ciaran Whelan, you won’t be surprised to hear, thinks along similar lines:

Meath have done well in the last two games but I just think there’s a massive gulf between the two teams – Dublin are on a different level. I’ve watched Meath twice over the last month and I think this year is about stability for them. They’ve been messed around the last few years in terms of change of management and the top structures haven’t been good.

Mick O’Dowd has come in and done a solid job with them but unfortunately I think they’re coming up against a different animal on Sunday. I can’t see their defense is going to cope with the Dublin pace. If Meath are going to keep this game tight, they’re going to have to change their game plan altogether and go very very defensively. I don’t know whether they’re equipped to do it. I don’t know whether they’ll have time to be able to implement it in an effective way – I cannot see beyond a comfortable Dublin win.

JOE Prediction: Dublin

Kildare v Louth

As has been pointed out again and again this week, Kieran McGeeney’s Kildare team are superb in the Qualifiers, with just one defeat in 15 games. It is only in the later stages where they come unstuck. Tactically, and in pretty much every other way, they came up short against Dublin at Croke Park, but this game is perfect for them to begin rebuilding pride and confidence.

Louth were a tad unfortunate to lose to Wexford and racked up a decent 1-17 against Antrim. Brian White and Shane Lennon will have to be watched but Kildare should bounce back with a win.

Kildare’s Johnny Doyle is not underestimating the Wee County:

The manner in which we limped out of the Leinster Championships was very disappointing.  You build yourself up for winning and that’s all that’s in your head. We didn’t do the things we talked about doing for one reason or another. Dublin are a very good team and the one thing we talked about was them hurting us on the counter attack if we gave away the ball. They got at least 3-03 from us giving away the ball and they just punished us every time. That’s what separates the good teams from the great teams. Their work rate around the field is at a level that we need to strive to get to.

They say the measure of a man is how he gets back up when he’s down and that’s what we need to do this week. You can feel sorry for yourself on the Monday and just mope around. By the Tuesday you know you have to move forward and look at the next challenge. That challenge is against Louth in Newbridge on Saturday night. We just have to be ready for it. It’s as simple as that. There’s no moping around. You get back up and you start doing the things we’ve worked on all year. We’ve seen Louth beat Laois with 10 points to spare – they were unlucky against Wexford and they did the business against Antrim. Aidan O’Rourke will feel like he has a yard on us having spent his time with Kildare. He knows us very well so that’s what we’re facing and we have to be ready. It’s as simple as that.

JOE Prediction: Kildare

Cavan v Fermanagh

With the best will in the world, this isn’t a game to whet the appetite. The first meeting was turgid but we have some hopes that this could be livelier. Cavan will be anxious to avenge their narrow Ulster semi-final defeat to Monaghan while  Fermanagh found their shooting boots against Westmeath.

We’re going for Cavan, but eircom’s Ulster ambassadors are divided;

Mickey Harte:  It took Fermanagh too long to get going and get the first score against Cavan last time out. They did dominate the second half and responded well with their win away to Westmeath and not a lot of people expected that to happen. Maybe we’re back in the same syndrome that Down & Derry had – Down had beaten Derry already and failed to do it again so quickly. Fermanagh might have more appetite and it should give them a slight psychological advantage going into the game.

Michael Murphy: Obviously the first game was very tough and it could have gone either way but there’s something about this Cavan side I really like.

JOE Prediction: Cavan

Wexford Longford 2012

Longford v Wexford

Possibly the hardest of the weekend’s Qualifiers to call. These sides have met numerous times in recent years, in League and Championship, and last year (above) only a point separated them, in Wexford’s favour, in the end.

The Model County can rightly feel they left the chance of another Leinster final appearance behind them against Meath as a combination of poor shooting and naive defending cost them. They have the better batch of forwards and if even one or two of Lyng, Barry, Brosnan and Banville hit form then they should survive this tricky trip.

Again, eircom’s experts are split.

Donie Shine: We’ve played Longford a few times in Pearse Park over the last few years and it’s not easy to get a win there. Wexford are coming off the back of a poor enough display against Meath and I fancy Longford to come through.

Colm Cooper: Wexford have that bit more experience of playing the bigger games against the Dublins of this world. It’s a toss of a coin really but I’d fancy them to come through in this one.

JOE Prediction: Wexford

Leitrim v Armagh

Not only do the Connacht side have to cope with the fallout of defeat to London but they will also play this game without star man Emlyn Mulligan. Armagh are not the force of old but they showed against Wicklow last time out that they are well capable of punishing teams from the lower divisions. Ten different scorers helped them rack up 2-21 against the Garden County and that means they should have too much firepower for Leitrim.

JOE Prediction: Armagh

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