FOOTBALL ANALYST:Put it all together, and Kerry just have too many things in their favour to fall at the Tyrone hurdle again

WHAT MAKES this one of the more attractive All-Ireland finals of recent years is the winning prospects of both teams are so evenly balanced. Both Kerry and Tyrone will strongly believe they are capable of winning, and that's not even factoring in the huge desire to win, given what's at stake.

There are plenty of subplots too, not least with Paul Galvin. There is no doubt he will come into the game at some stage, as his greatest asset is winning the breaking ball around midfield, which is going to be crucial in getting the better of Tyrone. The best thing for Galvin was to come in, rather than start, and he would have known that himself.

The first thing to go on, though, is the progress of both teams to the final, and from that point of view Kerry have been the more impressive. They've come through some thorough testing of all aspects of their game, particularly their defence, and while they creaked at times, particularly against Monaghan, Galway and Cork (twice), they came through in the end, and that's the important thing.

Pat O'Shea is now aware of the depth and ability of his panel, and outside of the starting 15, he has real quality players to call on - Darren O'Sullivan, Seán O'Sullivan, Donncha Walsh, Michael Quirke and David Moran. This game could hinge on the strength of the bench and Kerry certainly look stronger there.

Tyrone have some good reserves in the likes of Kevin Hughes, Martin Penrose and, of course, Stephen O'Neill, who I expect will make an impact at some stage. But their overall depth wouldn't be as good as Kerry's.

Another probable advantage for Kerry is they've clearly peaked for the past two All-Ireland finals, saved their best performance until the end. That has to be a bit of a worry for Tyrone, who haven't been at this stage themselves since 2005.

Kerry will be comfortable with the occasion and neither nerves nor pressure should be an issue. I suspect, too, they'll be extra determined to win this one, not because of the three-in-a-row, but because just as when they played Cork last year, the thought of losing to Tyrone again would be unbearable.

This Kerry team has never beaten Tyrone in the championship and this game will define all that. So it's not just the three-in-a-row driving Kerry; it's beating Tyrone. If they do that, history will take care of itself.

I was involved back in 2003 when Tyrone definitely caught us off guard with their intensity, and while two years later Jack O'Connor was a lot more ready for it, Tyrone still came out deserving winners.

It would be a terrible let-down for Kerry if they allowed that happen again, which is why I think they'll be even more ready for it. But it will mean every player concentrating on his own performance; they cannot let side issues come into it.

The three-week break since the semi-final win over Cork will also have served Kerry well. They'll be refreshed and recovered and I know team trainer John Sugrue will have worked hard to get them physically right on the day. It's worth noting too this is still a young Kerry team, beyond one or two obvious exceptions.

In contrast, there are a few questions about the form of Tyrone. They were certainly struggling early on, until they met Dublin, and even after that we've only seem glimpses of their best, combined with some poor football.

I have to say I fancied Dublin this year, and I'm still wondering was that Tyrone win a master-class display on their part or just a dreadful off-day for Dublin. That question still lingers. There was certainly no hint such a Tyrone performance was coming, but what it did confirm is they still have this wonderful team ethic, that ability to play high-intensity football, particularly when defending in numbers.

And yet when Wexford ran at them in the second half of their semi-final they looked vulnerable. That will no doubt be a concern for Mickey Harte, the same as Kerry's problem in losing eight- or nine-point leads in some of their matches will concern O'Shea.

Kerry's defence will be particularly aware of that. Pádraig Reidy is back in there and I feel he will do a man-marking job on Colm McCullagh. Likewise, I expect Marc Ó Sé to take up Seán Cavanagh, at least at some point. It's horses for courses with the Kerry defence.

Eoin Brosnan is a deserved starter too. He's a great athlete but will need to track back and cover the likes of Davy Harte and Philip Jordan, and the same with Bryan Sheehan.

One of Tyrone's strengths is their ability to get every player into a defensive mode. Harte gives them a clear understanding of their role in the team and they're guaranteed to cover space and players very quickly.

Harte will also have noted Kerry's potential to score goals, through the likes of Kieran Donaghy, Tommy Walsh and Declan O'Sullivan, and he's certain to commit extra players to the Tyrone defence to cope with that. The last thing Tyrone want is their full-back line isolated - which is why I expect to see the likes of Brian Dooher and Enda McGinley back there quite a bit. Tyrone will generally flood the full-back line with bodies.

Still, this Kerry forward line have a tremendous ability to prise open defences with goals, and I do feel goals will come.

Kerry's greatest advantage over Tyrone may well be at midfield. They have the size and ability to win primary possession, not just from kick-outs, but from breaking ball too, and I just don't think the Tyrone forwards will get the same supply of ball as the Kerry forwards, which of course will be pivotal to the outcome of the game.

Kerry certainly can't afford to slow the game down, or hold it up in any way.

Kerry's tactic will be to get the ball in quickly to their forwards. Otherwise, if Tyrone get to utilise their expansive, fast-running game, putting Kerry on the back foot, it could well go their way.

I suspect it will be very close, perhaps no more than two points in it, but what we've seen with Kerry this summer is the ability to make the big decision, the big move, in a closely fought game. They know what it takes to hit over the important scores at the end of a game, to take the winning points, when the big questions are being asked.

Throw in as well the fact it will probably be Darragh Ó Sé's last game, that we can expect a huge performance from him, and that Kerry not only have shown the character this year but also boast the better collective team of individual footballers, and they have just have too many things in their favour.