Kieran McGeeney fears Armagh ‘bad habits’

Kieran McGeeney is concerned Armagh have picked up “bad habits” in Division Three which could be exposed by Donegal in Sunday’s big Ulster SFC clash.

After comfortably steering his team to promotion in the spring, the Armagh boss has claimed a subsequent challenge match against Cork was a timely reminder of the chasm that exists between the top-flight teams and the rest.

“We saw against Cork, and I know people will think this is a cliche, but the mistake you have got away with (in division three) you will not get away with on June 14.

“The sloppy passes, giving someone a purple patch and try to soak it up; those kind of things.

“You do that to teams who play at a different level of intensity and they can put five or six points up on you. If you do that against Donegal, you are going to find it hard to claw that back.

“We are no different than any other team — you probably need a bit more belief to be able to compete — but I do think we would be at a disadvantage coming from Division Three.

“We have a good panel of players, quality players who can compete higher than that. But we have picked up bad habits, and I’m hoping they won’t cost us too much.”

Armagh are the last team to enter this year’s Ulster championship. It has given McGeeney time to “put legs” on fit-again Stefan Campbell, Caaolan Rafferty, Mark Shields and Kevin Dyas who missed large chunks of the league campaign through injury. However the 2002 All-Ireland winning captain says there is an understandable level of anxiety ahead the championship game and his first as Armagh manager.

“In any competitive arena there is that anxiety about taking the first punch. You don’t want to be sticking your chin out too much with a team like Donegal, or the first punch could kill you. They already have a game behind them, and it is going to be an intense battle in the Athletic Grounds. If we play well we know that we are capable of winning. They can probably compete without going to the same level because of their history and belief. “ When the Athletic Grounds was prevented from hosting Ulster championship games for health and safety reasons prior to its redevelopment, McGeeney and Armagh played most of their ‘home’ games at Clones.

He plays down the significance of hosting Donegal on home soil on Sunday, insisting the tight confines will better suit their opponents.

“Clones and Croke Park probably suits our style of football more,” he said. “I think the last time I played a home game was in 1997. In my last 10 years, I didn’t play a home game at the Athletic Grounds.