EVERY WEEKEND, OUR Friday football preview will give you the who, the what, the why, the when and the where ahead of the weekend’s GAA championship action, as well as statistics from analyst Christy O’Connor.
Here is the big game you can look forward to this weekend. For a chance to win Senior Championship game tickets courtesy of eir, click here.
Kerry v Mayo
All-Ireland SFC semi-final
When? Sunday, 3.30pm
Where? Croke Park
TV? RTÉ 2 and Sky Sports Arena
Kerry and Mayo have been regular visitors to the All-Ireland semi-finals in recent times and their epic 2014 replay in the Gaelic Grounds will live long in the memory.
Both have enjoyed contrasting routes to the last four. Kerry breezed past Clare, Cork and Galway, while Mayo needed extra-time to see off both Derry and Cork, and a replay to dispose of Roscommon. But Mayo hit a performance level the second day out against the Rossies that suggests they are beginning to peak at the right time and that they’ve found a system that suits the players.
The worry for Kerry is they’re coming into this game cold, while Stephen Rochford’s side are battle-hardened and road tested. Still, Eamonn Fitzmaurice is a fine manager and he’s only been beaten by Dublin in the championship. Kerry’s inside forward line of Paul Geaney, Kieran Donaghy and James O’Donoghue is finely balanced, extremely potent and could well be the difference.
There are so many probing questions heading into this game. Will Kerry put Paul Murphy on Lee Keegan’s tail? Who will Mayo deploy on Kieran Donaghy? Are we in for another thrilling contest between James O’Donoghue and Keith Higgins? Which team will win the kick-out battle? How will Aidan O’Shea fare? Will Mayo Mick make an appearance?
We’re in for an intriguing affair.
Christy O’Connor says: In their history, Kerry have played 76 All-Ireland semi-finals, winning 57. In those semi-finals, Kerry have beaten 19 different teams – Mayo, Galway, Roscommon, Cavan, Leitrim, Dublin, Laois, Carlow, Antrim, Meath, Louth, Longford, Derry, Sligo, Monaghan, Offaly, Armagh, Cork and Tyrone. Between 1964 and 1986, Kerry won 16 out of 17 All-Ireland semi-finals. The only one they lost was to Dublin in 1977, regarded as one of Gaelic Football’s greatest games
In their history, Mayo have played 33 All-Ireland semi-finals, winning 14. In those semi-finals, Mayo have beaten nine different teams – Cork, Cavan, Kerry, Armagh, Tyrone, Offaly, Fermanagh, Dublin and Tipperary. Mayo have as many All-Ireland semi-finals in this century – 5 – than they did during the previous 50 years, when they also won five
The42′s verdict: Kerry
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