Kerry are my choice - The football showpiece of the year has thrown up a unique pairing. The 2007 all Munster All-Ireland final promises to be an action packed occasion and not one for the faint hearted. There are obvious parallels between this game and the All Ireland final of 2003 when Tyrone and Armagh clashed. Back then the pressure on both sets of players was enormous. As if there isn't mounting tension in preparing for the final, then the thought of losing such a game to your most deadly rivals exacerbates the situation even more. In 2003 it was impossible for the players to try and ignore the hype and excitement that is generated by competing in the first ever All Ulster decider. With both sets of supporters not only living so close but working and socialising together, it all added up to a fantastic atmosphere in the days prior to the final. For the supporters, they would go to any lengths to get one over their closest of neighbours. One had to outdo the other even if this meant painting cars, tractors even sheep in the county colours. The sheep may not be safe around Cork or Kerry either as the tension begins to rise. The fact that Kerry are competing in another All-Ireland final is not such a big thing in the Kingdom. The fact that they could lose and hand over the Sam Maguire to Cork is! No matter when Cork play Kerry there is always something at stake - Cork and Kerry don't to 'friendlies'. Once again Kerry will be hot favourites. They have already defeated Cork and their performance against Dublin was both skillful and composed. Many pundits don't give Cork a chance citing that fact that the only teams they beat this year were sub-standard. Neither Louth, Sligo nor Meath played in Division 1 of the league this year. I don't concur with this train of thought and expect the final to be decided in the closing minutes. I do believe that man for man Kerry possess the more skilful team but if any team is well placed to take advantage of Kerry's weaknesses then it is Cork. The tactical battle along the line will go along way towards deciding the outcome. Pat O' Shea has proven himself to be no slouch when it comes to this department. He has made big calls this year that have paid off. His players have responded well to him and appear to have full confidence in him. Pat is taking this Kerry team to a final for the first time - the same cannot be said of his opposite number. Billy Morgan is a wily old campaigner and will take huge satisfaction if the Rebels overcome Kerry and take Sam back to its birthplace. The performance of his emerging side this year has been patchy. During the NFL I described them as the Jekyll and Hyde performers. When they were good they were awesome but when they struggled they were awful. A number of the Tyrone players have said that without a doubt Cork were the best team they played against in the league this year. Their problem back then was maintaining a high standard. As we approach the end of the season, consistency still appears to be a problem for them. They have had a number of off colour days against Kerry in Croker before - they can't let that happen this time. To get the better of Kerry Cork will need to raise their game to a new level. The defence is probably the strongest aspect of the Cork team. There is a toughness and ruggedness about them, meaning that if opposing forwards get a score from play then they will have surely earned it. In terms of the six Kerry forwards likely to start, Cork will be confident of having man markers for each of them. This may be the case for 5 of the 6 but I'm not convinced they have someone to take care of the Gooch. If Cooper gets space and any decent supply of ball then he is virtually unstoppable. The dilemma facing Cork is whether to keep a defender or midfielder sitting back in a holding role to cover the space in front of the Gooch. By doing this Cork could be asking for trouble and inviting Kerry on to them. It's okay marking space but Kerry, more so than any other county, possess an array of players that can kick long distance points. With Cooper being the complete team player he will be cute enough to occupy a couple of defenders and leave the space for the others to exploit. I expect ultimately that this will be the difference between the sides at the finish Kerry will just have the edge when it comes to finishing power in comparison to the Cork forward unit. In terms of honesty and hard work the Cork front six will be exemplary but if Donnacha O'Connor is well marshalled - with Marc O Se on your tail this is likely - I can't see where the majority of their scores will come from. Kevin Mc Mahon has been their most consistent forward this year and has really impressed me. Cork will need him to continue in this vein of form. Back in the Munster final it was he who led the Cork revival against Kerry. He will need to go at them from the start this time. Apart from the uniqueness of this final there are other similarities between this final and that of 2003. Like Tyrone back then, Cork will go in as underdogs. They too will be keen to prevent their bitter rivals from claiming back to back titles. In the 2003 final, the championships top scorer was doubtful through injury and was used sparingly. This year's top scorer - James Masters is also struggling with injury and he too will be expected to make an appearance at some stage. I can't see the similarities stretch any further. As with Limerick most neutrals would like to see the underdogs come out on top. The championship can be cruel and holds no place for sentiment - the Kingdom to win, but only just. Tweet

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