Dublin v Longford

Croke Park, 4.0

In the Bardens and Trevor Smullen, Longford have attackers of quality, but are prone to lapses at the other end (something their hosts will sympathise with). This could be a day for Jayo, Dessie Farrell, Wayne McCarthy and company to inject some May optimism into the good citizens on the Hill. Tommo Lynch gets his first championship start in a couple of summers and needs to impress on the able Paul Barden. If Ciaran Whelan is the leader of this team, the Mullins of his day, this is the hour to start shouting and showing. And if Dublin don't want to be stung in the later rounds, then they'd better show a bit of cruelty. No slacking off, no mercy. What they have lacked most tellingly is the killing instinct that all successful teams carry at heart. Whether they have developed that or not should be evident by the manner in which they dispose of Longford.

By Keith Duggan