Kerry remain focused

Last year it was Dublin against Tyrone - an 82,000 sell-out under the floodlights of Croke Park. This year it's Donegal against Kerry - and the hope is that it will sell out under the floodlights of Ballybofey. Still, the reigning league champions against the reigning All-Ireland champions isn't a bad way to start the new Allianz National Football League campaign.

Saturday's game is in fact the first competitive game for Kerry since their All-Ireland win last September, having opted out of the recent McGrath Cup. Donegal at least have the Dr McKenna Cup behind them, and Kerry are also not long back from their holiday in Hawaii and San Francisco.

Yet, according to forward Bryan Sheehan, Kerry have high ambitions for the league: "I think Kerry have always taken the league very seriously, especially the last few years," he says. "We've wanted to qualify for the semi-finals and finals, because that was two extra games for us. And this year is no different. We want to progress to the final, and get that competitive game close to the championship.

"But Donegal are going to be tough. We're back about three weeks now, with a couple of good sessions under our belt. But we are lacking some match practice. We'll just see where we stand. But with this new format it's a very competitive league, and you really can't sit back at all.

Not surprisingly, manager Pat O'Shea hasn't yet mentioned the words "three-in-a-row", and Sheehan isn't entertaining that thought either.

"Sure it was the same last year, with the talk of two-in-a-row. Everyone knows our goal is the All-Ireland, same as every year. Be it two-in-a-row, three-in-a-row, or just to win it once. We're not going to jump into the league 100 miles an hour. We'll feel our way around. But it's an opportunity to blood players as well."

One player definitely pushing hard from the start is new captain Paul Galvin, although with Colm Cooper opting out of the early rounds of the league while travelling Stateside, and Darragh Ó Sé still yet to return to training, this will an experimental few weeks for Kerry.

"The Gooch is one of our driving forces all right, and the main target man, scoring man. But that's the opportunity for some other players now to step into the fold. And it's the opportunity to see where we stand without him. Anything can happen in championship. He could get injured, or be suspended. We'll see how we cope without him, and hopefully someone can step into the fray.

"And Darragh Ó Sé is still doing his own thing at the moment. But I certainly don't think we've seen the end of Darragh yet."