Game of two haves - haves and have-nots

ALL-IRELAND FOOTBALL FINAL: This is going to be the ultimate test for the Kerry attack who thrive onpace and space. John O'Mahony Football analyst.

There is no doubt that Croke Park will tomorrow host two of the most highly motivated teams to play in an All-Ireland final in recent years.

But both teams have very different reasons for wanting to claim the ultimate prize in Irish team sport.

Kerry were humiliated in last year's semi-final by Meath and then, to add insult to injury, Cork dumped them out of this year's Munster championship.

If they lose tomorrow they will have nothing and that will spell a troubled winter in the Kingdom.

Armagh, on the other hand, have been so close over the last few years.

Each time they have gone out of the championship to the eventual winner - Meath, Kerry and Galway - and they only lost in extra-time in a replay against Kerry two years ago.

For them, this is very much a case of unfinished business. Many other teams in a similar situation would have thrown in the towel, but not Armagh.

They have shown magnificent resilience to return.

Victory now would erase all the bad memories and, of course, also give them the satisfaction of being the only unbeaten team in this year's championship.

The feeling after Kerry's demolition of Cork in the semi-final suggested they were a sure thing for the title, but the Armagh display against Dublin and the huge improvement they showed from the Sligo game in the quarter-final has made many people revise their predictions.

This opinion is greatly reinforced when you consider that Cork were simply awful against Kerry.

The outcome tomorrow will very much depend on which team can impose their type of game on their opponents.

Kerry like to move the ball at pace from their defence through a midfield where Darragh Ó Sé is the link man to inside forwards Mike Frank Russell and Colm Cooper.

Dara Ó Cinnéide makes the early runs and creates the space.

It will be interesting to see how Armagh deal with this because they play very tight in defence.

Kieran McGeeney, in particular, sits in front of the full back line with half forwards and midfielders funnelling back when Kerry have possession.

This is going to be the ultimate test for the Kerry attack who thrive on pace and space.

In contrast, the Armagh build-up is more deliberate.

McGeeney and Paul McGrane fire a lot of ammunition towards the inside forwards where Stephen McDonnell, most notably, inflicts great damage.

The Ulster champions do not play with the same pace or abandon as Kerry, but their game plan worked very effectively against Dublin, especially the tactic of lofting a lot of high, diagonal balls at the defence.

The physical presence of the likes of Diarmuid Marsden, McDonnell, Ronan Clarke and John McEntee allows them to win ball in this area, even if the passes are not always perfect.

No matter how you analyse this final, there is very little between the teams.

The additions each have made since they met two years ago have brought a lot to the party, but they balance each other out.

Clarke has been a magnificent find for Armagh and McDonnell has matured into one of the most lethal forwards in the game.

In the Kingdom, Colm Cooper has been the find of the season and Seán O'Sullivan has added stability to the half forward line.

In defence, Aidan O'Rourke and Francie Bellew have fitted in well for Armagh with O'Rourke especially on form in the semi-final. Bellew faces his biggest challenge yet if he picks up Russell.

Marc Ó Sé and John Sheehan have been valuable additions to the Kerry defence.

One area that Kerry will be aware of in the lead-up to this game is the number of frees they are conceding in matches.

It was something like 40 against Cork, which is above average, and with John Bannon tomorrow's referee being a strict enforcer of the rules they will be looking for better discipline in their tackling.

Also, with players like Tomás Ó Sé, Tom O'Sullivan and Sheehan walking a very fine line against Cork, it is in their interest to keep the lid on tomorrow.

Given the surprising outcome of some of the concluding matches in the championship over the last few years, and the sense of purpose that both teams have, tomorrow's result is very hard to call.

You would need to be inside the heads and minds of players and management alike in the days leading up to the game to pick up the positive or negative vibes.

However, based on the available evidence, Kerry get the nod to win their 33rd All-Ireland title but it will be mightily close.

If Armagh are within a point or two in the closing minutes don't rule out a replay.