Roscommon selector Liam McHale says home advantage "will be massive" for them this Sunday when they take on Galway in the Connacht SFC final.

Kevin McStay's men will look to defend their provincial crown on Sunday as 5/2 outsiders and while McHale himself acknowledges that the opposition have made huge strides since the teams last competitive meeting 12 months ago, he's still confident the Rossies can make it back-to-back Nestor Cups this weekend at Hyde Park.

"It's huge for us. We're a young team, an improving team. There was a bit of controversy and a bit of banter. We were worried it wouldn't be here," he told RTE Sport. "Two years ago we went to Salthill and got a draw. We went to Castlebar because we didn't have this lovely venue here to play in and we got beaten by nine or 10 points by Galway.

"For confidence levels and for ease of mind and peace of mind for the players, I think it will be massive on Sunday.

"The enthusiasm has been fantastic all year. We won Division 2, we were delighted with that, we didn't play really well. It seemed to be a slow burner and that's the way we wanted it to be. The last few weeks we have been really playing well. It's a very young team but they are very skilful. They are very humble and hungry and they are really looking forward to Sunday.

"We all know how good Galway are and the improvements they have made as well. We feel that here especially, and that's how important this venue is to us, that we have a really good chance of retaining our Connacht title."

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