Colm Boyle believes the open nature of this year’s football Championship will result in some big upsets in this weekend’s quarter-finals.
Writing in his weekly Irish Mirror column, the former Mayo star feels his native county can edge a close battle with Dublin and also thinks there’ll be a shock in Croke Park this afternoon.
Boyle also addressed an infamous clash with Dublin’s Eoghan O’Gara in the 2017 All-Ireland SFC final and expressed his view that Dublin got away with much much than Mayo did during a series of high-profile battles between the two teams.
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“As good as Dublin were in a footballing context, and they were sensational, physically they were animals. We had to meet that head on and that led to flashpoints,” stated Boyle.
“I don’t want to portray us angels; there were plenty of moments on either side where the line was crossed but I always felt that, overall, they got away with more than we did. They’d probably say the opposite.
“In that 2017 final, I ended up on my back with Eoghan O’Gara standing over me with, to put it charitably, his fingers uncomfortably close to my eyes. Nothing ever came of it.
“Call me paranoid, but I can’t help feeling that that wouldn’t have been the case if, say, I or Lee Keegan did it to one of them.
“There were verbals but, as a backline, we weren’t as industrious with that sort of stuff as the likes of Philly McMahon, James McCarthy or John Small up the other end.
“There’s very little that didn’t happen in those games, from the last-minute winners (and levellers) to sendings off, own goals, to GPS trackers flying, players being dragged down all over the pitch in the dying seconds; everything was covered.”
However, Boyle feels there’s a hint of “The Last Dance about Dublin” this year and has tipped Mayo to turn them over on Sunday.
“The return of Stephen Cluxton, Jack McCaffrey and Paul Mannion along with the ageing legs of Michael Fitzsimons and James McCarthy gives the impression that Dessie Farrell is throwing everything at this rather than trying to develop players like David O’Hanlon for the future, which is a dangerous game,” added Boyle.
“Despite a change in format, Dublin have still pretty much cruised into the quarter-final.
I said from the outset that I believed it would be the quarter-finals before we see the real Dublin. For a team that has won so much, they need knockout football to get the juices flowing. The sight of a Mayo jersey will certainly help.
“From Mayo’s point of view, belief will be harnessed from recent wins in Killarney and Salthill; it’s now time to repeat the trick in the lion’s den in Croke Park and I believe they are in a great position to do so.
“There will be nothing straightforward about this but if Mayo really test Dublin’s will in a genuine battle, then I think they can cut the music to this Last Dance.”
As for the other quarter-finals, Boyle thinks Tyrone can upset the odds against Kerry and expects Derry to prove too strong for Cork. As for Saturday's second quarter-final, the Mayo legend thinks penalties could be required for Armagh again.
“David Clifford has been sensational this year but if the Tyrone defence can curtail his influence to that of even a normal human being, then Kerry could struggle,” said Boyle.
“Darragh Canavan is up there in the top three or four forwards in the county right now and, along with his younger brother Ruairi and a rejuvenated Mattie Donnelly, they can cause the Kerry defence major trouble.
“Maybe, similar to Dublin, Kerry need the jeopardy of knockout football for them to really kick into gear but I think there are warning signs all over this game for them. Tyrone may well hit the ejector button on the All-Ireland Champions.”
He added: “Armagh-Monaghan could be the surprise game of the weekend in terms of excitement and could go all the way to extra time or penalties.
“Monaghan certainly won’t fear Armagh but Kieran McGeeney must see this is his golden ticket to Armagh’s first semi-final since 2005, and I think they will do enough to win it.”
“Derry should have enough to reach another All-Ireland semi-final but I don’t believe it will be as straightforward as many people think.”
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