Rusty champions still have too much in the tank

THE Kerry management have every reason to be fearful of the challenge posed by Monaghan in the last of the All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals at Croke Park tomorrow (2pm).

There is the worry about a six week lay-off since the Munster Final and the fact that the manner of victory over Cork wasn’t overly convincing.

And, whether or not this is a better Monaghan team than the one which a Páidí Ó Sé captained side dismissed in a replay in the their last championship clash 22 years ago, it’s safe to say that they will not be intimidated by Kerry.

Indeed, they have strong grounds for feeling very optimistic about causing an upset.

This isn’t a case of Monaghan arriving overnight. They made a certain amount of progress under Colm Coyle and while Wexford shocked them in the second round of the qualifiers last year, Seamus McEnaney helped accelerate their development through renowned man-management skills.

They play an attractive brand of attacking football, with Tommy Freeman revelling in the role of target man in attack, as indeed he has been over the last few seasons. Currently, he is second leading scorer behind the unfortunate James Masters.

So far, Kerry have coped reasonably well without Mike McCarthy anchoring full-back, which he did impeccably for so long, and Seamus Moynihan’s inspirational play in the half-back line.

However, if Aidan O’Mahony has the mobility and handling skills to settle in at centre-back, it remains to be seen if Tom O’Sullivan can do the same on the edge of the square. When Cork put on real pressure in the final quarter in Killarney, the Kerry defence was easily breached.

While you couldn’t make a direct comparison with the 2005 All-Ireland final — when Kerry lost mainly because Tyrone were more battle-hardened — their lack of match practice is bound to count against them. Yet, while it may result in a slow start, or some difficult periods when Monaghan come storming at them, I don’t believe that it will cause them to lose.

As long as the defence is not undermined (bearing in mind that the two players on the left flank, Padraig Reidy and Killian Young are new to this level of competition), Kerry are certain to win enough good ball to service the attack. They know they can depend on the likes of Darragh Ó Sé for leadership all over the field, but they will be hoping to Kieran Donaghy for a return to the form which made him so invaluable last season.

Even allowing for the potential of the Monaghan attack, it does not represent the same threat, individually as a unit, as Kerry’s forward line does. And, it’s precisely for that reason — with Colm Cooper certain to be in the vanguard — that I expect the champions to advance to the semi-final.

Verdict: Kerry