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Oisín McConville: Kerry and Mayo have points to prove

Aidan O'Shea and Adrian Spillane battle for possession in April's league final
Aidan O'Shea and Adrian Spillane battle for possession in April's league final

Ciarán Whelan and Oisín McConville were in disagreement over which All-Ireland quarter-final held the most promise as they looked ahead to a bumper weekend of action.

Ulster champions Derry will face Clare at Croke Park on Saturday, followed by the meeting of Cork and Leinster kingpins Dublin.

Sunday's action, which will be live on RTÉ 2, will see the clashes of Connacht winners Galway and in-form Armagh, before old foes Kerry and Mayo lock horns.

For Whelan, it's the potential for a provincial champion to be beaten that gives the meeting of the Orchard and the Tribesmen the edge.

"The pick is Armagh and Galway, two very evenly-matched teams," said the two-time All-Star.

"Both coming with great momentum, it has the potential to be a belter. Mayo will relish the underdog tag going in against Kerry, who could be undercooked.

"Clare and Derry, we know how Derry will set up. Will Clare have learned from Donegal? You would expect that Dublin would have too much for Cork, even though Cork have shown a bit of bite in the last few rounds."

Armagh-native McConville disagreed, stating that the modern Kerry-Mayo rivalry means it will hold the most interest for the average punter.

The counties have come up against one another five times in championship since 2014, with two draws, and two wins for the men from the Kingdom.

The Green and Red's only victory in that sequence came in the 2017 All-Ireland semi-final replay, but they come into the weekend's clash having claimed back-to-back victories over sides competing in Division 1 of the Allianz League in the spring.

Kerry meanwhile have played just twice since they annihilated James Horan's men in the league final in April, although they did record big wins against Cork and Limerick en route to provincial glory.

"Armagh v Galway has the makings of a great game but there is huge intrigue around Mayo and Kerry," said 2002 All-Ireland winner McConville.

"Everybody is touting Kerry as being way ahead of everybody else. Mayo will be waiting in the long grass but they haven't shown the form.

"On form so far Kerry should blow them away. You think back to the league final, but I couldn't sit here and say Kerry are going to blow them away.

"Mayo may have found that little bit of form in the last 10 minutes of their last game. It's a difficult one because Kerry are coming in slightly under-prepared.

"There's a question mark over them until they actually go and win it. When you've question marks over you, you don't want to be coming up against seasoned campaigners like Mayo."

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