One of the good things about having newcomers like Armagh in the All-Ireland final is their sense of occasion. When a county reaches the highest level roughly once every quarter of a century, this perhaps isn't surprising. But it's nonetheless refreshing for those of us in the jaded hack pack whose September songs have become increasingly weary in recent years.

A week ago this evening the Ulster champions held their open night in the Athletic Grounds in Armagh city. It was chaotic with crowds of supporters and well-wishers thronging the venue to catch a glimpse of the players and get photographs and autographs. Large numbers of stewards had been brought in to marshal the crowds but frequently to no avail. As players arrived they were surrounded and as they signed programmes and jerseys, word spread and reinforcements gathered to supplement the autograph hunters.

Upstairs in the pavilion complex a room had been kept free for the media to gather their souvenirs of the evening. This activity followed much the same format as that in the car-park. As soon as one or two reporters found a player available for comment, many others sensed the scent of quote in the evening air and circled the loquacious prey.

Tables with players' names atop were spread around in the large hall where this was unfolding. The plan was, evidently, that the footballers in question would take their places and answer questions at allotted times. The system broke down before it really got going. Too many of the panel had been detained outside and were late arriving.

A quick glance out the windows resembled a scene from Night of the Living Dead with players valiantly trying to make the safety of the building before being swallowed up by slow-moving crowds anxious to detain them. Maybe it was the prospect of what awaited them inside but the players were happy to stop for as long as it took. And it didn't matter because in the end everyone got sorted out.

The point of the above is not to complain about media access but to acknowledge the genuine efforts of the county board to facilitate both the public and the visiting media. Naturally the best laid plans did go off the rails but only because of natural mass enthusiasm. Players came and went in and out of the room to be mobbed outside and eventually the media had had its fill.

Earlier in the day Armagh manager Joe Kernan had been running an open house for anyone who wished to visit. And there were quite a few. In the course of his interview with this newspaper, Kernan outlined in blunt terms the purpose of a pinned-up news clipping taken from coverage of semi-final opponents Dublin's win over Donegal.

"You always look for some angle to motivate," he explained, "and if it means someone saying something that you can twist or turn to get the better of somebody so be it. There's no sense in saying that I don't play it. Every county in the country does. At the end of the day it's getting the best out of the players you can. Some need a pat on the back; others need a kick in the arse. Whatever it takes."

This phenomenon is familiar. Media coverage has become a major factor in preparing for big matches. What is said about teams by reporters or - better still - opponents will often, literally as well as figuratively, end up pinned to the wall. Factoring in the media can be as important as factoring in the referee.

That still doesn't mean teams should feel justified in treating the media, any more than the referee, with disregard but it happens in both cases. Take Kerry for instance. Recent events have shown that being a referee in the Kingdom is no bed of roses. Even more recent events have shown that being a reporter also has its moments.

Last Saturday an event was held so the media could fill its notebooks and tape recorders with whatever the Kerry players had to say. If some self-congratulation might be permitted I decided to skip the process - having decided that there were more interesting things to cover in Killarney.

NO county has more senior All-Irelands and any reporting visit to Kerry is usually well rewarded, whether it involves covering matches at Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney or talking to the many discursive football people whom the county abundantly produces.

It is accordingly a communications tragedy that such a team that expresses itself so flamboyantly on the field shies away from any further expression off it. A long time ago manager Páidí Ó Sé decided that keeping his team as anonymous as possible was the best way to handle publicity.

For those hardy individuals - investigative reporters as it were - who did turn up there was the choice of four first-team players with whom anyone could talk. Despite assurances that all were present, player after player declined to be interviewed.

As football is still an amateur game, no one can force players to talk and reporters accept that. But they can't accept being jerked around by being invited to attend a media "opportunity" peopled by players who don't want to talk. If only four of the team are willing to participate, why bother bringing the rest along?

No one's that bothered from a reporting perspective. Journalism - including Gaelic games journalism - encounters greater problems than lack of co-operation at All-Ireland media nights. The reading/viewing/listening public, which constitutes the media's first priority, wants coverage of big occasions and important matches and consequently gets it regardless of whether it's thoughtfully facilitated or not.

The public lose out a bit on the coverage but followers within a competing county would prefer to win the All-Ireland than be a source of good copy. The unfortunate thing is that there is no evidence to suggest the two are mutually exclusive. Apart from the current Kerry team, no All-Ireland football champions of modern times have felt it necessary to be so unco-operative with media.

One Armagh player made the point last week that he worried about whether being open and accessible was a good idea. Kerry, he accurately reasoned three days in advance, would say as little as possible and Armagh would carry the disproportionate burden of providing publicity material.

So despite the adventurous style that makes them firm favourites going into the final, Kerry will contribute as little as possible to the sense of occasion. Which is unfair on Armagh and a selling short of Kerry's own colourful football tradition.