Cork v Donegal 26/08/2012

Sunnyisland

It takes a Dub here to start a thread about Sundays semifinal between Cork and Donegal :)

Will donegal finally get to the All IRELAND after 20 years or will Cork be to strong and fast for them ?

Will it be full of free flowing football or will Donegal use the blanket defence ?



For me I don't mind who Dublin meet in the final :P:P:pac:

Fr Tod Umptious

Not sure how it will go

If Donegal can get a early laed then their chance of keeping it are greater and thus winning the match, just like v Kerry.

If Cork on the otherhand establish any sort of a lead then it's game over as Donegal are not programmed to go out a find their way back into a game.

The 14 men behind the ball does not lend itself to coming from behind late in a game

jimmy the car

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Not sure how it will go

If Donegal can get a early laed then their chance of keeping it are greater and thus winning the match, just like v Kerry.

If Cork on the otherhand establish any sort of a lead then it's game over as Donegal are not programmed to go out a find their way back into a game.

The 14 men behind the ball does not lend itself to coming from behind late in a game

Where I would def agree with the comment alright, nobody really knows within Donegal or outside what they are like if they really have to chase a game, can't really take last years performances into account as it was just a transition, which this is year is as well albeit with alot more counter attacking and getting points on the board.

Up until the last 5 mins of the Kerry game I thought if we got a lead we could hold onto it easily enough , not sure if it was nerves or what but Kerry did rattle us there, but we held on and got the win in the end.

Cork are a totally different ball game and I don't think (althought would love it) that we'll be 6 point up with 5 mins to go, the first 15/20 mins is where the game is going to be settled I feel, if Donegal can get a few early points on board I feel they can grind out a very tight win, if Cork hit the ground running we will have to see a side to Donegal that no one has seen in 2 years at least and I don't think even Cork would be prepared for that never mind anyone else, whether that is good enough to break down this quality Cork half back/full bak line only time will tell.....

Heart says Donegal/head says Cork....roll on Sunday

Neeson

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

If Cork on the otherhand establish any sort of a lead then it's game over as Donegal are not programmed to go out a find their way back into a game.

The 14 men behind the ball does not lend itself to coming from behind late in a game

It might be dangerous to be thinking it's game over if Cork were to go ahead though.

TopOfTheRight

Donegal got an early lead against Kerry thanks to a lucky goal, allowing them to play their usual men-behind-the-ball game, it will be really interesting to see what happens if Cork go a few points up early on and Donegal are forced to come out and play!

Fr Tod Umptious

Neeson wrote: »

It might be dangerous to be thinking it's game over if Cork were to go ahead though.

Well that's the real test of Donegal.

David Brady summed it up very well last year 'you cannot play tactics for 70 mins'

Wishful thinking here but I would love Donegal to win this and then Mayo to destroy the myth that is the Donegal system in the final

jimmy the car

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Well that's the real test of Donegal.

David Brady summed it up very well last year 'you cannot play tactics for 70 mins'

Wishful thinking here but I would love Donegal to win this and then Mayo to destroy the myth that is the Donegal system in the final

Be more than happy with this....then take the final as it comes

ShamoBuc

I think Cork will come out of the blocks quickly and try to get a lead, forcing donegal to come at them more and Cork will use this to finish them off - simple really:pac:


Cork by about 5.

cgpg5

Fancy Cork here and handier than some people think. Cork can score from distance and will definitely not panic if things don't go their way early on. They also have plenty of reserve on the bench. I expect them to lord it at midfield also and their half back line is the best in the country at attacking. Simply put Cork are the best team in the country and I don't expect them to mess up like last year. If they go out and get a good lead early on it'll be interesting to see how Donegal respond. When they went behind to Dublin last year they still kept 14 men behind the ball. Incredible. Laughable even.

From a Mayo pov hope Donegal win, but I won't be crying if they're knocked out either

Stoner

cgpg5 wrote: »

From a Mayo pov hope Donegal win, but I won't be crying if they're knocked out either

From a Dublin pov hope Donegal win.

If Dublin get to the final I think they'd rather Donegal, Cork is the team that has consistently beaten this Dublin team over the past 2 years, Dublin have the advantage of both playing and seeing more of Donegal so the style can be better planned for IMO.

It would be delighted if Dublin won again, but if that is not the case I hope that Cork do, might take some sting out of their tails for next year. No harm in a bit of strategic planning.

I can see the Cork backs playing some top class football in this semi, it might be another low scoring game.

DDC1990

I have a feeling after watching Cork tear Kildare apart that they will do a similer job against Donegal.

I know Donegal beat Kerry easily enough, but I don't think they'll get a lead against Cork.

Cork are everything that Kerry aren't, Fast, Physical and Fit. On top of that they are great footballers.

I think they will get goals and open the game up when Donegal have to chase.

Cork by 8 IMO.

Neeson

DDC1990 wrote: »

I have a feeling after watching Cork tear Kildare apart that they will do a similer job against Donegal.

I know Donegal beat Kerry easily enough, but I don't think they'll get a lead against Cork.

Cork are everything that Kerry aren't, Fast, Physical and Fit. On top of that they are great footballers.

I think they will get goals and open the game up when Donegal have to chase.

Cork by 8 IMO.

Remember Kildare weren't up to their best though. And just basically gave up.

cgpg5

Neeson wrote: »

Remember Kildare weren't up to their best though. And just basically gave up.

Cork simply didn't allow them to play well at all though. They showed exactly why they are at another level to everyone else and how they can blow lesser teams (to them) away. As someone else posted they could well beat Donegal by about 7/8. I would love to see Cork get an early goal or two just to see how Donegal respond, do they have a plan B?

And in response to Stoner I have to agree that Donegal are indeed the team to get in the final. Saying that both of these teams would much rather get Mayo aswell.

NIMAN

Heart says Donegal, not sure what head says.

Gonna be a tight one.

GO ON DONEGAL !!

Padkir

ShamoBuc wrote: »

I think Cork will come out of the blocks quickly and try to get a lead, forcing donegal to come at them more and Cork will use this to finish them off - simple really:pac:


Cork by about 5.

But if Cork go into an early lead, nothing will change. Unless it's a >6 point lead, but that just won't happen.

Donegal won't panic if they go a few points down, they're more than capable of pulling it back.

I really don't understand why people think it will be very low scoring. Both teams have been scoring freely all year and it will remain the same here, I'd be shocked if either team scored less than 1-11 or 1-12.

For all the talk of Donegal having 14 men behind the ball, they break extremely quickly with 4 or 5 physically big, quick and fit men, who for the most part have a lot of football in them. They are well able to score, and a completely different team than last year.

I think getting a late scare against Kerry will stand to them, they now know they can't let up even for 5 mins or they'll be caught.

Draw or Donegal by 1.

Big Pussy Bonpensiero

Cork are strong favourites but tbh I can't see it. People are talking about how big and physically strong Cork are, and how they're able to run through defences, but they will not be able to that against this Donegal team. I was up at the Kildare match, and people are getting very mislead by what happened that day. The Cork forwards were dragging their markers wide, which allowed the half-backs and midfielders to cut through the middle with ease, this will not happen with Donegal. They are a very compact team, and we saw in the final in 2009, when Kerry used a blanket defence after half time, Cork weren't able to handle it, and ultimately, those 15 minutes won Kerry the match. Donegal will be doing that for the whole match, and imo, the Cork forwards simply aren't good enough to deal with them.
Whatever happens, one thing that I am sure of is that the AI winner will come from this game. I think, for reasons above, and also because Donegal have had a tough route and Cork a relatively easier route, Donegal will win this. I'd be surprised if more than 3 points separated the teams at full time.

Dangerous Man

Fancy Cork to edge it but I'd prefer for Dublin to meet Donegal should we get past Mayo.

corny

Donegal are good at making games highly attritional and up until now they've been physically superior to every side they've played. Can't see that continuing against Cork. Cork have strength all over the park and lots coming off the bench too. It will be tight and tense but in the last 10 minutes Cork will take the game away from them just as Dublin did last year.

Dublin have their hands full with Mayo obviously but if they get through i'd like to play Cork. We gave them fierce trouble in 2010 before inexperience and the stupidity of Ross McConnell let them back into it. Would make a great final; Dublin-Donegal wouldn't.

Neeson

A Cork-Dublin final would be terribly one-sided. I'd see a Donegal-Dublin one being a closer affair.

Irish94

Cork will find it very hard to break down Donegal's system, however unlike Kerry, Cork has quality substitutions to bring in in case they find it tough. Think Cork will win but only by 2 - 4 points.

Dangerous Man

Neeson wrote: »

A Cork-Dublin final would be terribly one-sided. I'd see a Donegal-Dublin one being a closer affair.

But they're arguably the two top teams in the country?!?!

Neeson

Dangerous Man wrote: »

But they're arguably the two top teams in the country?!?!

Yeah, but I'd think Cork would have too much for Dublin. Dublin and Donegal would be more evenly matched. If anything Donegal would probably give a bit more against Cork, in terms of fitness, than Dublin would.

Stoner

Neeson wrote: »

Yeah, but I'd think Cork would have too much for Dublin. Dublin and Donegal would be more evenly matched. If anything Donegal would probably give a bit more against Cork, in terms of fitness, than Dublin would.

These are essentially the same two teams that were separated by a point in 2010, I have no idea how anyone would think it

Neeson wrote: »

would be terribly one-sided

Obviously is may turn out that way that one side runs away with it, but it is more likely to be a tight game.

Cork my find it hard to deal with a blanket defence, and Donegal do operate a better blanket defence than Kerry, however I think that we need to look at what Kerry can/could do back then that Donegal have yet to prove they can do i.e that Kerry team had some fine attacking players, some would say the best group of attacking players ever. It's a bit of a leap IMHO to say that Donegal will beat Cork because Cork struggle with a blanket defence, you have to score and not just stop others from scoring to win.
The Donegal forward line is not the Kerry forward line, say what you want about how much Donegal have improved as a scoring team, but IMHO there are three or four Kerry forwards who would make any team in Ireland right now with the exception of Cork, who would still possibly take O'sullivan, Gooch and park Donaghy on the bench.

Neeson

True but you'd have to also look at what Kildare did against Cork. Some say it was because cork were so good in attack. I think the Kildare heads dropped. I mean they gave away two stupid goals to begin with after starting off quite good. One goal given away after a fella gives away a free by picking the ball of the ground under no pressure. The other when a bad pass was intercepted by a cork player.

elguapo

I think the term "war of attrition" might be the operative term for this one. Don't expect it to be pretty, but I think Cork's ability to kick long range points might give them the edge.

Donegal are determined and well drilled, but I do wonder about their ability to get back into the game if they were to find themselves 3 or 4 points down with 15 mintues to go.

I reckon Cork might shade it, but it'll go to the wire one way or the other.

boxer.fan

There is an awful lot of talk about Cork's ability to score long range points but it remains to be seen whether they can do it under high pressure. Every team Donegal have met so far were expected to improve their scoring from long range to negate Donegal's pressure defence but have failed.

I think this game will be decided on whether Murphy/McFadden/McBrearty can take their scores.

jimmy the car

Obviously it's no comparison to the county level but Murphy scored 8 points for his club at the weekend, if we could get the same return out of him and others on Sunday I'd be happy end! Really just trying to clutch at straws at the minute, hate all this waiting round craic, just want it to be this time on Sunday now, no more forums to be read telling me how good both teams are and the qualities/negative points one has over the other, just 70 odd mins to decide it....

Irish94

jimmy the car wrote: »

Obviously it's no comparison to the county level but Murphy scored 8 points for his club at the weekend

I'm surprised he was allowed to play for his club!

curry-muff

Just got my tickets for 329 in Hogan, excitement has begun to kick in, Cmon Donegal!!!

jimmy the car

Irish94 wrote: »

I'm surprised he was allowed to play for his club!

Most of the lads played at weekend, clubs all giving out about missing them with games being put back etc. cause of the good run we're on in AI so they had no choice really!

Treble20

Personally I think Sunday is a very hard game to call. Working with a lot of West Limerick and North Kerry lads I'm surprised at the majority of them thinking Cork will win handy enough,while I can't see this happening I'd be quite happy if it does!

Cork have had a relatively easy enough passage to get this far,comfortably beating Kerry,Clare and Kildare and at the same time amassing big scores along the way in each game. However in Donegal they face a physical well organised team who Cork will find much harder to get scores against compared to their last 3 games. I've been so impressed with this Donegal team I went to a local bookies after their Ulster final victory and put 20 euros on them at 6/1 to win Sam!

This game will be a tough close contest I feel,as a Cork supporter I feel our lads have to be at their physical and mental best to beat Donegal,I'm sure Counihan and his management team will have Cork prepared right,I'll go with Cork to win by 2-3 points and hopefully I'll be tearing up that docket come Sunday evening around 5 00:D!

beeroclock

Impossible to call, heart says Cork, head says should I get pizza or KCs for tea?

Rebel Fan

As a Corkman living in County Down I'm very intrigued by the level of confidence being shown up here towards Donegal, 90% of gaa folk up here reckon Donegal will win. Most say cork won't be able to cope with the blanket defence, this is Donegals year, Cork won't cope with Donegal scoring from the break etc etc. Has anyone watched Cork playing this year??? They are the fittest team in the country, they have big powerful men with no shortage of talent and a subs bench that are capable of changing a game. I agree Donegal have improved imeasurably in the last two years and two Ulster titles speaks for itself, but they have yet to face a team like Cork in the championship.
We look like we have regained the hunger that was missing last year, we were beaten fair and square by Mayo but a lot of things went against us in 2011. There were a lot of question marks hanging over us before the Kildare game but in fairness we answered them emphatically. There was a serious aggression to our play and a very noticeable killer instinct on the day. People say that Kildare collapsed on the day but I would dispute that. We built up a lead, fell asleep for a while but when the second half got underway we were able to make changes, go through the gears and we were relentless once we got a sniff of victory.
Kildare play a style of football that is quite similar to Donegal, very conservative in defence and try to hit teams on the break. However, once we got a few points up in the second half Kildare obviously had no answer to it, no plan b to chase down a game. We must do this again on Sunday, if we can be a few points ahead in the second half there is every chance the Donegal heads will drop, if we get a sniff of victory again I expect us to be relentless again. Donegal have bought into a system that has worked so far, but they have never been behind by a few points with the game in the melting pot so it'll be very interesting to see if they are able to change it around if needed. The flip side to this of course is will we be able to keep our heads with the brick wall well be facing on Sunday, if Donegal get a few points up they'll sit back and defend from deep. If we can remain patient and composed I think well win by a few points, Donegal will never be hammered and they will lay it all on the line, but with the players we have from one to twenty I hope we have enough to get over the line. It promises to be a cracker, wouldn't be surprised if there was a red card or two but the heart and head says Cork by four or five points.

CORCAIGH ABU!!!!!!!!!!

thefa

Some have referred to cork having an easier path to this stage but that must be simply looking at it as number of games because the ulster championship that Donegal came through has not been as strong as usual. Other Ulster teams performances in the qualifiers and quarters have shown that. A pasttheir best Kerry team have been beaten by both cork and Donegal. Maybe you could argue that Kerry in croker is a tougher test but cork won beat Kerry by more and didn't look a bit convincing in the process.

blowitupref

Cork IMO have the best forward line and possibly the strongest panel they are more focused than last year and are determined to win back Sam. Donegal for me have the best back line one of the most fittest, organised and improved teams.

This game has all the ingredients to be classic i think narrow win for Cork.

martyf84

Going to be an intriguing game on Sunday. Hoping Donegal can do it, but, I think this is the acid test for us. Every game this year we have have put in a strong 10-15 min spell mid 2nd half that has effectively won games. It will interesting to see if we can dominate this period against this cork side.

With regards to Donegal having to come from behind, the team showed character last year at 6-1 down coming up to half time in the ulster semi against Tyrone and again at 3 points down at the start of the 2nd half of extra time against Kildare in the quarters last year.

Really looking to Sunday now, hoping for a real good game that is decided on merit and not a referring decision. May the best team win.

K-9

Stoner wrote: »

These are essentially the same two teams that were separated by a point in 2010, I have no idea how anyone would think it



Obviously is may turn out that way that one side runs away with it, but it is more likely to be a tight game.

Cork my find it hard to deal with a blanket defence, and Donegal do operate a better blanket defence than Kerry, however I think that we need to look at what Kerry can/could do back then that Donegal have yet to prove they can do i.e that Kerry team had some fine attacking players, some would say the best group of attacking players ever. It's a bit of a leap IMHO to say that Donegal will beat Cork because Cork struggle with a blanket defence, you have to score and not just stop others from scoring to win.
The Donegal forward line is not the Kerry forward line, say what you want about how much Donegal have improved as a scoring team, but IMHO there are three or four Kerry forwards who would make any team in Ireland right now with the exception of Cork, who would still possibly take O'sullivan, Gooch and park Donaghy on the bench.

It's kind of pointless comparing both forward lines as McFadden and Murphy will be the only 2 forwards actually played by Donegal. McFadden is in the form of his life and Murphy has been quiet but effective so far, I think he could come good on Sunday. Donegal have perfected counter attacking which is why ceding possession in midfield doesn't bother them, it's extremely difficult to pick up 5 or 6 lads making runs continuosly in counter attack. The spread of score from Donegal backs is huge this year.

Irish94 wrote: »

I'm surprised he was allowed to play for his club!

Championship games have been canceled for a good few weeks but Glenswilley are facing relegation from Division 1 and threatened boycotting the game.

Still think Cork will win by 2 or 3 points.

K-9

martyf84 wrote: »

Going to be an intriguing game on Sunday. Hoping Donegal can do it, but, I think this is the acid test for us. Every game this year we have have put in a strong 10-15 min spell mid 2nd half that has effectively won games. It will interesting to see if we can dominate this period against this cork side.

With regards to Donegal having to come from behind, the team showed character last year at 6-1 down coming up to half time in the ulster semi against Tyrone and again at 3 points down at the start of the 2nd half of extra time against Kildare in the quarters last year.

Really looking to Sunday now, hoping for a real good game that is decided on merit and not a referring decision. May the best team win.

Indeed people forget they did it twice last year in big games, they just haven't had to do it this year.

corcaigh07

Rebel Fan wrote: »

As a Corkman living in County Down
CORCAIGH ABU!!!!!!!!!!

completely off-topic but if you are living in Belfast, you are living in Co.Antrim!

K-9

corcaigh07 wrote: »

completely off-topic but if you are living in Belfast, you are living in Co.Antrim!

Not necessarily!

Just An Opinion

Neeson wrote: »

A Cork-Dublin final would be terribly one-sided. I'd see a Donegal-Dublin one being a closer affair.

I'm intrigued by your logic here, so you reckon Cork would beat Dublin in a one sided game, but yet a Donegal team who'd have beaten this superior Cork side in a semi-final to somehow be more evenly matched with Dublin?

I can't see how Cork would be winning with such ease but yet their conquerers would have a tighter game with a Dublin team you claim are no match for Cork?

MaroonAndGreen

Winner of this will surely be installed as favourites for the AI.

Sunnyisland

corcaigh07 wrote: »

completely off-topic but if you are living in Belfast, you are living in Co.Antrim!

The city covers both Co Antrim & Down :)

Sunnyisland

I am going for Cork on this occasion also a bit of topic, its amazing that next weeks match is getting more posts than this one ? Where are all the Corkonians and Donegalites.

yop

I think Cork are a far better team throughout the pitch than Kerry and I think their power will put it up to Donegal.
It down to who kicks off faster, I think Cork will tear into this and aim to put Donegal on the back foot and draw them out.
That said back to back Ulster isn't an easy task, on the flip side of that, the main teams in Ulster like Tyrone and Armagh are not as strong as they were.

Its very hard to call, I expect to see Cork to win this, but then again Donegal have a belief about them that is hard to close out.

Should be a great game.

jimmy the car

realies wrote: »

I am going for Cork on this occasion also a bit of topic, its amazing that next weeks match is getting more posts than this one ? Where are all the Corkonians and Donegalites.

Well me for one as a Donegal man am trying to keep as quiet as possible and just read the posts and not say to much for fear of hanging myself come Sunday! Problem is it's such a tight game to call, to look at it, on paper Cork have all the attributes to win this game easily enough, the have the match or beating for most of the Donegal lads BUT no one really knows how this Donegal team will be set up for the match. They haven't really been tested to a great degree if you take out the last 5 mins of the Kerry game. I just think/hope that Jin McGuinness has something up his sleeve...

I think the belief within in the squad that they can win is unbelieveable at the min and the county as a whole has bought into this system, I for one couldn't care less if we play in what the pureists say is the worst game of football ever witnessed (after our game last year against Dublin) just as long as we get the result at the end of it.

curry-muff

Preview from the Donegal camp, they don't seem to be getting too carried away:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFNgWensqmg

Randy Watson

Beside myself with worry over this one. Don't know If i'll make it to Sunday without enduring some sort breakdown.

I think people analysing Corks run so far have been doing them a disservice by saying they have had it easy. They beat kerry by 5 points. People point to the fact that they missed four goalscoring chances and were missing Sheehan. Well Cork had three of their own goalscoring chances were missing P O'Neill and Pa Kelly, also Ciaran Sheehan was only half fit. Cork beat them fair and sqaure. End of......

The Munster Final was a non event. Clare's tactic of going man to man saw to that. As for the quarter final I don't think too many people predicted Cork to demolish Kildare in such a fashion. I was genuinely apprehensive before that game as were alot of Cork fans. For Cork to do that to a much ballyhooed Kildare team took some doing.

As for Sunday I can't call it. Cork know what is coming but whether or not they have the wherewithal to overcome it is another matter.

Donegal are well oiled out fit and it is a credit to McGuinness to have them so fit and organised in only his second year in charge. There's alot more to them that fitness though. Fine footballers all over the field. I stayed on after Corks game in the quarters to get a view of who we'll be playing and it's fair to say the smirk on my face after our victory didn't last long. Naturally delighted that kerry were out but the thought of Cork playing this Donegal team had me in knots.

Shields and Cads to mark McFadden and Murphy. There's alot of talk about Donegals defence, well Corks defence isn't too shabby either. Nullify these two and we've a great chance. So many imponderables though.

Roll on Sunday, if I last that long

GK1001

jimmy the car wrote: »

Well me for one as a Donegal man am trying to keep as quiet as possible and just read the posts and not say to much for fear of hanging myself come Sunday! Problem is it's such a tight game to call, to look at it, on paper Cork have all the attributes to win this game easily enough, the have the match or beating for most of the Donegal lads BUT no one really knows how this Donegal team will be set up for the match. They haven't really been tested to a great degree if you take out the last 5 mins of the Kerry game. I just think/hope that Jin McGuinness has something up his sleeve...

I think the belief within in the squad that they can win is unbelieveable at the min and the county as a whole has bought into this system, I for one couldn't care less if we play in what the pureists say is the worst game of football ever witnessed (after our game last year against Dublin) just as long as we get the result at the end of it.

You're dead right man. It's all about the W. F*ck the rest of us and our whinging about nice football.

Donegal are a funny one for me. I have a number of really good mates from Letterkenny. I often have spare tickets for Dublin matches, when we're not packing out the joint, and there's a couple of them who'll come watch us play anyone. They just love their football and Sunday pints.
On the one hand if we don't do it (and I dont think we will from what we've seen this year) I'd love for these mates to experience what I got out of last year. But then on the other hand I can't stand watching Donegal at the moment. I want to see them beaten and beaten well.

I'll be hoping Cork win on Sunday but I can't really offer any confident prediction on how this will pan out. My guess is it will be 1 or 2 pointer either way.

One things for sure though, you're never short of craic in the boozers around Croker when Donegal turn up! Mine's a Guinness:D

jimmy the car

GK1001 wrote: »

You're dead right man. It's all about the W. F*ck the rest of us and our whinging about nice football.

Donegal are a funny one for me. I have a number of really good mates from Letterkenny. I often have spare tickets for Dublin matches, when we're not packing out the joint, and there's a couple of them who'll come watch us play anyone. They just love their football and Sunday pints.
On the one hand if we don't do it (and I dont think we will from what we've seen this year) I'd love for these mates to experience what I got out of last year. But then on the other hand I can't stand watching Donegal at the moment. I want to see them beaten and beaten well.

I'll be hoping Cork win on Sunday but I can't really offer any confident prediction on how this will pan out. My guess is it will be 1 or 2 pointer either way.

One things for sure though, you're never short of craic in the boozers around Croker when Donegal turn up! Mine's a Guinness:D

Guinness it is then so, with a good dollop of tabasco in the bottom just to help it go down at the end

Feck your Premiership Super Sunday, half 3 in Croke Park is what it's all about and all going according to plan it'll be Michael Murphy lifting Sam telling us he'll see us in Coppers on the 23rd

applehunter

Talking to a couple in the camp yesterday and they are quietly confident going into the game.

Don't expect it to be a great game considering the form.

Last time Cork played against a similar tactics in Championship was probably Dublin 2010. Dublin couldn't keep it up for the 70 mins and eventually flood-gates opened. Maybe Donegal can last the 70 minutes with their renowned fitness but by the same token Cork are a better team now than in 2010.

My fear is that we fall back into old habits and Counihan will not make tactical changes quick enough.

Ultimately however, it comes down to players and not systems. Cork have the edge in most areas especially up front. Maybe I'm being a bit simplistic but when you can bring on players like Daniel Goulding & Pierce O'Neil, its hard to see how Cork will be beaten.

Verdict : Cork by 4