Monaghan veteran Vinny Corey says the Farney men will have to “up the performance levels” if they are to overcome Armagh this Saturday evening in Clones.

Malachy O’Rourke’s charges bounced back from their first round loss to Cavan with an unconvincing victory over Fermanagh in Round 1 of the qualifiers and Corey knows that a better performance will be required against the Orchard County.

“They have a lot of fires that need to be put out, a lot of boys on top of their game. Attacking-wise they seem to be a very potent threat,” the 36-year-old told The Irish News.

“They didn’t seem to have any problem playing Fermanagh in the league: Fermanagh were going for promotion and Armagh beat them easily. Likewise, in the first round of the championship Down were set up very defensively and they had no problem breaking them down. They are very attacking, but they have a bit more about them than just playing off-the-cuff.

“Worried would be the wrong word but there’s a sense that there has to be a bit of urgency. There’s a good chance, in a lot of people’s eyes, that we could be going out of the championship on Saturday night because Armagh’s coming in with a bit of form. Many people would feel they’re playing the better quality football and we haven’t reached those levels yet.

“It’s definitely not a draw to be complacent about, you can’t just ride your luck, we’re going to have to up the performance levels”.

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