The race for Sam Maguire really heats up this weekend and here we preview the four games taking place at Croke Park on Saturday and Sunday.

 

Saturday, July 29th

All-Ireland SFC Qualifiers Round 4B

Down v Monaghan, Croke Park, 5pm - Sky

Eamonn Burns' Down side have been one of the stories of the summer, their win over Monaghan - when they were 9/2 outsiders - certainly the most seismic upset of the championship to date.

And the aftershocks of that tremor continue to resonate in Farneyland, too. They hammered Wexford but that game wasn't the reset button they hoped for - they toiled for long periods in their most recent clash against Carlow and that didn't instil confidence.

Still, it's a curious feature of GAA analysis that a defeat or a poor performance can often be taken as a positive - motivation will be higher, or so the adage goes. It does appear as if the rules of engagement have changed in this particular Ulster battle since it last waged in the Athletic Grounds.

For one, the surprise factor is gone. For two, Croke Park is a wide open prairie compared to the claustrophobic confines of Armagh. And, finally, Monaghan have won twice since, regardless of how unconvincing they were last time against uber-defensive opposition, while Down were exposed in the provincial decider against Tyrone.

If Burns' troops can recreate the performance of the Ulster semi-final, there is no reason to believe that they will be far away. That - how they react to the Ulster final trimming - remains the big intangible, however, and Malachy O'Rourke's men should improve. A Down win is not beyond the realms of possibility but Monaghan - seasoned and generally consistent - are the safer bet.

Verdict: Monaghan

Armagh v Kildare, Croke Park, 7pm - Sky

The beauty of the qualifiers is that they throw up the novel - teams, even neighbours from different provinces, who have never met before lock horns. And then they bring us the familiar, too, and the tantalising.

Witness, for example, Monaghan travelling to take on Seamus McEnaney's Wexford, or Seanie Johnston lining out for Kildare against Cavan at the height of one of the most drawn-out GAA controversies of recent times.

And the latest involves the Lilywhites again as, almost inevitably, their former boss Kieran McGeeney brings his Armagh side to Dublin 3 to take them on. Love him or not, 'Geezer' is box office and while there are critics of his managerial record, in the qualifiers, it stands up to scrutiny.

Kildare reached four All-Ireland quarter-finals and one semi-final in succession through the back door and he will hope to repeat that trick here, with an exciting style of play which revolves around what some have been calling a Division 1-standard forward line who happened to be trapped in Division 3.

Certainly, in the likes of Andrew Murnin, Stefan Campbell and the mercurial Jamie Clarke, they have firepower in abundance and that gives them a hell of a shout. Kildare, though, look like they could potentially be something special - they're full of pace, athletic specimens (some of whom played AFL and soccer professionally) and have momentum.

Daniel Flynn, at a press briefing during the week, made the right noises, suggesting this game is coming at just the right time - it's far enough away to allow some balm to be applied to the sore of the Leinster final loss yet not too distant so as to allow room for a loss of focus.

With the high-fielding Kevin Feely available after winning an appeal, the Lilywhites look in fine fettle and possibly uniquely in recent GAA history, they came out of their provincial final on the wrong side of a nine-point defeat but with credit.

Verdict: Kildare

Sunday, July 30th

All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals

Kerry v Galway, Croke Park, 2pm - RTE

A win here would certainly banish Galway's Connacht final ghosts (not to mention the upset they endured against Tipperary on this same stage last year), but the Tribesmen face a tall order against this Kerry side on Sunday afternoon.

Eamonn Fitzmaurice's charges have won every competition they've been involved in to date in 2017 and are 1/5 favourites to secure their county's fourth All-Ireland quarter-final victory over the men from the west this weekend.

The Kingdom were untroubled in Munster this summer and return to Croker for the first time since ending their great rivals Dublin's historic run of victories between league and championship. Confidence will be high, but not too high, according to defender Killian Young, who this week pointed to his county's shock defeat to Down of seven years ago on the very same stage.

This is a different scenario though. Factor in the Division 2 National League triumph and Galway still haven't looked like All-Ireland contenders at any point in this season (although Donegal may have made them look something like it in Sligo last weekend) and they're likely to struggle for the 0-17 this weekend never mind the four goals.

Kerry, on the other hand, with sharpshooter Paul Geaney leading their front line, shouldn't have much trouble exposing Galway's defence if they're on form, going by evidence from this month's Connacht decider.

All going according to script for the Munster champions, they should extend the Tribesmen's wait for a first championship victory at headquarters to a 17th summer.

Verdict: Kerry

Roscommon v Mayo, Croke Park, 4pm - RTE

The Rossies' past record in quarter-finals doesn't bode well for them going into this one - they've lost three times out of three on the last eight stage - but a derby with Mayo at Croke Park on Sunday will surely provide Kevin McStay's charges with plenty of incentive to change that unwanted record.

It's the first all-Connacht All-Ireland quarter-final since 2001, when Galway dispatched the men in primrose and blue on route to Sam Maguire, and it's Stephen Rochford's Mayo side that are fancied to progress to another semi-final.

It may be somewhat harsh to point out, but last year's beaten All-Ireland finalists have come through the qualifiers in unconvincing fashion this summer, flirting with elimination against Derry in Castlebar and also requiring extra time to overcome Cork's stern challenge in a classic down in Limerick.

However, the Westerners still remain very much in the hunt, with Cillian O'Connor totalling 2-40 so far for them in the championship and you can expect the Ballintubber man to be top of the charts again on Sunday if the Rossies' are in for a fourth consecutive quarter-final defeat.

McStay, who managed Rochford as an U21, will surely be keen to change that tune and it starts with his defence shackling O'Connor, while also hitting the ground running at the other end.

A strong finish is likely to be the key ingredient for the winners of this one and it all makes for a fascinating on Sunday which it could well come down to the favourites being that bit more familiar with the big stage and their surroundings when all's said and done.

Verdict: Mayo

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