Before the draw was made last weekend you just had a feeling that Armagh and Donegal would be paired together and that’s exactly how things panned out.

We will get to this weekend’s game shortly, but first let’s reflect on Armagh’s fantastic performance last weekend to make sure they were Monday morning’s draw.

In the build-up to this game, everything pointed towards a Tyrone resurgence and personally I felt that Armagh would be in for a difficult afternoon, but it was quite the opposite.

This Armagh team, under Kieran McGeeney, has come in for quite lot of criticism over the last number of years for not being able to turn in big displays when they are needed most.

We saw how well they performed in this year’s League and then, just as hopes were high, their performance against Donegal in their championship opener was nothing short of shambolic. I felt Armagh totally got their tactics wrong from the kick-outs right up to where they placed their most influential players on the field.

After that game, the Armagh team – and their management in particular – came in for some heavy criticism but, now, as it stands, they have the perfect opportunity to redeem themselves. They were the better team right from the start on Sunday against bitter rivals Tyrone, showing far more hunger and urgency in their play.

Looking at that game, I felt they played the perfect brand of football. They mixed it in terms of long fast ball inside and, at other times, held possession when they needed to do so. Tyrone couldn’t live with their hunger and intensity. And, being honest, there should have been a lot more in it as Armagh opted for points when once or twice the goal was there for the taking.

As well as massive performances from the likes of Rian O Neill and Stefan Campbell, we also must give special mention to goalkeeper Ethan Rafferty. Let’s face it, against Donegal he had a tricky day to say the least. Last weekend Ethan looked way more assured and confident in his own ability. On top of carrying out his goalkeeping duties, he kicked two screamers that any other player on the pitch would have been extremely proud of.

For me, as Armagh look forward to this weekend‘s game, that is the number one area where I would start to look at. Donegal simply dismantled Armagh on their own kick-out last time around, putting extreme pressure on Ethan, so this is something that he will have to be ready for this weekend. After last weekend’s win, spirits in the Armagh camp will be at an all-time high and I’m sure players would have been bouncing around the training ground this week after hearing news of the draw. I’m sure that after the Donegal game, the Armagh players and management did some soul-searching and that loss would have hurt. But, let’s not also forget that on that day Donegal were head and shoulders above Armagh in terms of their tactics and how they carried out their own game plan.

The big thing for me looking in is how Armagh will use Rian O’Neill this weekend. When we cast our minds back to the opening Championship game against Donegal, he operated mostly as a third midfielder and he had little or no effect in the game. In order for Armagh to beat Donegal, they need their big game players highly involved in the game so this weekend I expect to see Rian O’Neill spend more time at number 11 or number 14.

Knowing Kieran McGeeney and the type of fierce competitor that he was as a player and how personally he takes defeats, I think he would have been rubbing his hands on Monday morning when Armagh pulled Donegal out of the hat. This tie will be interesting to say the least.

On the flipside, Donegal would rather have rather played anyone else apart from Armagh because anyone will tell you that once you beat someone in a Championship game you don’t want to see that team until next season. You have given them all the ammunition they need to come hunting for you. In the first game, I felt Donegal got their tactics absolutely bang on, putting severe pressure on, giving them the platform to build on that day. They dismantled Armagh with ease.

I’m sure Declan Bonner and his backroom team will have a lot of questions to answer this week and the build-up to this game. They must now look at Armagh and try and predict what they may change from the first game and how best Donegal will counteract this, but without sacrificing too much of their own game.

We expected a nasty streak in the last game given how the league encounter played out, but I feel this may come this weekend because this is the last chance saloon for both of these teams and perhaps the management teams as well, should the result not go their way.

From a Donegal point of view, I hope that they learn the lessons from the Derry game and that they are not too conservative and they go out and try to win the game as opposed to trying to contain the opposition. It’s not a tactic that suits us.

It’s prediction time and although I tipped Tyrone last weekend and got it terribly wrong, I’m hoping that there is a kick in this Donegal team and that we can once again pull this one out of the fire. I’m going for Donegal, but only just.