Allianz NFL Division 2 previews

RTÉ.ie's Séamus Leonard previews this weekend's opening Allianz National Football League action in Division 2.

Allianz NFL Division 2

Sunday

Kildare v Down, Newbridge, 2.30pm

Should Sunday's game at Newbridge come down to firepower then the likelihood is that Down will emerge as winners.

Kildare will line out without talisman John Doyle, as the Allenwood clubman serves a four-week ban for his part in the O'Byrne Cup melee with Laois.

The fate of team-mate Morgan O'Flaherty is not so cut and dried, as he is appealing against an eight-week suspension for kicking 'with minimal force'. O'Flaherty is arguing that it was a case of mistaken identity.

The Lilywhites have left Alan Smith, one of their star performers en route to the All-Ireland quarter-finals last year, go from their panel as he attempts to work his way back from a back injury.

Kieran McGeeney has done a fine job since he took the reins in 2007, and the Armagh connection continues to grow with 'Geezer's' old Orchard team-mate Aidan O'Rourke coming in as his right-hand man.

Martin Clarke's return from Collingwood is undoubtedly a huge boost for Down. Underage success has failed to materialise into senior honours in recent years, but with Clarke back in the Mourne fold and James McCartan at the helm, Down supporters will be hopeful that progress can be made this year.

They started the year brilliantly with three wins in the McKenna Cup, but then lost by the minimum to eventual winners Donegal in the semi-finals. It was interesting to note, though, that Donegal were saved by the final whistle, as substitutes Martin Clarke, Benny Coulter and Danny Hughes had Down in the driving seat in the closing stages at Brewster Park.

McCartan had accused the media of over-hyping his side prior to that defeat, and so it might have come as a relief that they lost.

Defeat on Sunday will not be taken in such good spirits, however, and McCartan will have to learn to live with the hype if his side go on to earn promotion for the second successive season.

Verdict: Down

Westmeath v Donegal, Cusack Park, 2.30pm

Two sides in vastly different veins of form will lock horns in Mullingar on Sunday.

New Westmeath manager Brendan Hackett has endured a difficult start to his tenure after being knocked out of the O'Byrne Cup by DCU and then denied a place in the shield final by Wexford.

Like many sides, the Lakesmen have concentrated on blooding new players thus far this season. But new management teams are rarely afforded the time they need to make their mark, and Hackett and his colleagues will need to get their act together quickly if they are to survive in what is sure to be a very competitive division.

Their cause will not be helped by injuries to three of their stalwarts - Fergal Wilson (groin), Michael Ennis (knee) and John Smyth (Achilles) - who they will want available as soon as possible.

The Midlanders finished pointless at the bottom of the top flight last year, but the table masked a couple of impressive performances and some rotten luck they had under Tomás Ó Flatharta.

Donegal will ride into town on a high, unbeaten in four games and with the Dr McKenna Cup back in the trophy cabinet for the second year in a row.

However, the Tír Chonaill men were in a similar position last season and went on to be relegated from Division 1 and followed that up with an indifferent Championship campaign that ended with a humiliating 1-27 to 2-10 defeat at the hands of Cork in the All-Ireland quarter-finals.

Full-forward Michael Murphy is one year older and that little bit wiser and stronger than he was in 2009 when he still had Leaving Cert worries to contend with. The Glenswilly clubman could do for Donegal football what Joe Canning has done for Galway hurling.

At 9/2 the Ulster side are not a bad bet to land the divisional title, but manager John Joe Doherty is on the record as saying that the Championship is the be-all and end-all as far as he is concerned.

Even allowing for that, he would surely be a very annoyed individual if his side were to fail to win on Sunday.

Verdict: Donegal