ONE of the unusual sights this weekend as the National Football League, sponsored by Church & General, stages its last full programme of matches before the knock out phase, is that of Cork sitting on top of Division Two.

The Munster champions have been a significant championship presence for the past three years, but their League performances over the same period have been, at best, uninterested. That has changed this season.

Since losing on the opening day of the campaign when a severely under strength team went down to Cavan, Cork have won all their subsequent fixtures. Tomorrow, they should confirm promotion and a place in the quarter finals. At worst, they could be involved in a three way play off for two places with Armagh and Cavan.

The incentive for Cork extends beyond the bare fact of making an exit from Division Two and having a crack at the League title. Over the last 10 years, the county has found a correlation between doing well in the League and having a good championship. Conventionally, the opposite applies, but in the years that Cork broke Kerry's stranglehold on Munster (1987) and won their two All Irelands (1989 and '90), the team reached the knock out stages of the League.

"It's the first time in a while we've taken it seriously," says Steven O'Brien, one of the few remaining survivors of the All Ireland successes and the team's most consistently influential member over the past few years. "For four years, we didn't seem to care, but this year, we went out to have a cut. Before, we were getting six or seven at training. Now there's 26 or 27 and the atmosphere is better. There's a buzz, a bit of crack during the week and competition for places.

"Billy (Morgan, the Cork manager) said at the start of the year that we'd all have a chance and that once you're in, you won't be moved if you're playing well. And if you're still there by the end of the League, you won't be left out just because you haven't played championship before."

Morgan has said that there are reasons why good runs in League and championship concur. Involvement in the knock out phase allows Morgan to maintain the panel on a fully competitive basis, whereas if the county has been eliminated, club activities take over and it's impossible to inject the same level of urgency into players during a programme of challenge matches.

Morgan has also maintained that he takes the League as seriously as his injury list allows and that last season, for example, he was short about half of his first choice 15. This season has been kinder in that respect, but ironically it has flared up sufficiently this weekend to force O'Brien back to centre back from centre forward.

Pivoting the defence has been O'Brien's most recognisable position in recent years, but his versatility is well attested. He won his All Irelands in the full back line and captained Nemo Rangers to the club All Ireland two years ago from midfield.

In the League to date, O'Brien has led the attack and been major influence on the team's success. Tomorrow, in Armagh, he reverts to the half backs in what is clearly seen as a temporary measure.

"We've three or four backs gone and I'd been enjoying it (centre forward), but we have to win this (tomorrow's match). Originally I played in the full back line and couldn't wait to get out. I used to hate it. All I wanted to do then was play centre back and that worked out well.

"Billy (Morgan) always said he'd give me a chance in the forwards and it's been going well. We've been scoring goals which we weren't before. I'm not saying that's all down to me, but the way the forwards have been playing has worked.

"I'm used to playing centre forward with the club and I love it. It's doing the simple things on the ball and getting things organised among the forwards, creating space and opportunities. We've been settled, we've had the same six for four or five games.

Tomorrow's match in Armagh will be tricky in that the home side will still have a chance of progressing if they win. Cork's last outing was to Carrick on Shannon to play Leitrim in what O'Brien says was the hardest match to date.

"There was a partisan crowd against you and they're a very good side, but preparation has been good this year and we came through."

The ability to weather fired up locals will be again tested this time, but the likelihood is that Cork will eventually emerge with their ticket for the first division one of many arduous trips undertaken this season.

"One of the hardest parts of the weekend," says O'Brien, "is the travelling. Five hours on a bus watching videos. That's the second video, we must be in Portlaoise that sort of thing."