Here's our preview for Sunday's All-Ireland minor football championship final between Derry and Kerry at Croke Park.

 

Sunday, September 17th

All-Ireland MFC final

Derry v Kerry, Croke Park, 1.15pm

There are so many sub-plots to Sunday's All-Ireland minor football final that it's hard to know where to start.

David Clifford, who has scored 4-38 in the championship to date, is the obvious place. The Kingdom young gun has been in extraordinary form and it's no exaggeration to say that he has at times single-handedly shot Kerry into this final.

Witness the All-Ireland semi-final against surprise packages Cavan - Kerry won by 12 points, Clifford bagged 1-10. He really is that good.

In the red corner, though, Derry have their own reasons to be cheerful. This will be manager Damian McErlain's last match as minor boss before he takes up the senior reins in the Oak Leaf County and his record has been exceptional.

In the three years McErlain has been over the team, Derry have reached a hat-trick of provincial finals, winning twice.

The line of form through the Breffni lads may shine some light on this. Derry beat them by seven in the Ulster final and that suggests that Kerry might be slightly better - then again, the Kingdom were only five clear with a few minutes to go before pulling away against the same opposition.

Derry have been impressive all season, stunning a fancied Tyrone side in their opener, filleting an Antrim team who had slain a strong Donegal team and then winning the Ulster final with a bit to spare.

And while they toiled at times in beating Sligo by the minimum in the quarters, the win over Dublin at Croke Park made the GAA world sit up and take notice.

Twin brothers Lorcan and Oisin McWilliams have been stand-out performers for Derry, who last made the final in 2007, with captain Padraig McGrogan also impressing while Oran McGill and Conor McCluskey are the latest teak tough defenders off the Oak Leaf production line.

Sub Callum Browne, a powerful athlete, has also done well in cameos off the bench. The Kingdom, though, are no one-man team, with three survivors from 2016 including Brian Friel, who also has been in sparkling form.

All in all, an extremely close battle is expected but Derry get a tentative vote to deny Kerry a fourth win in succession in this grade.

Verdict: Derry

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