GAELIC GAMES: Dublin v Tyrone: VIEWED DISPASSIONATELY, this afternoon's GAA All-Ireland football quarter-final should be Dublin's without an excess of fuss.
Without having had to cross any bumpy terrain, the Leinster champions have looked smooth and purposeful.
Tyrone compare poorly with where they were when the teams last met in championship, en route to the All-Ireland. The attack that played that day has all but disintegrated. Peter Canavan and Stephen O'Neill have retired and Owen Mulligan is no longer first-choice.
Two of the attack remain, but neither Brian McGuigan nor Brian Dooher can be said to be in the sort of form he enjoyed in 2005.
Seán Cavanagh is at full forward, which would be all very well were he also still at centrefield, but there is only one of him.
Why then is this match - aside from the practicalities of sudden death - such a stress test for Dublin?
Most obviously because Paul Caffrey's team haven't done anything so far to prove they've solved the tendency to panic in big games, and despite the decline in Tyrone, Mickey Harte's team are comfortable in Croke Park and aren't under any pressure in a match for which they are 3 to 1.
Interviews in the past week indicate the Dublin players themselves accept the necessity of winning a match of this nature to steel the team for what lies ahead, particularly with little kudos likely should they beat Wexford in an All-Ireland semi-final.
To date the season has been notable for sustained displays at centrefield, where Shane Ryan's mobility and drive has propelled him into All Star consideration and Ciarán Whelan's focus has been as impressive as his ball winning.
The forwards' effort has been led by Alan Brogan but there have been good scoring inputs elsewhere. Place-kicking hasn't been great and needs to be tightened the farther the team progresses.
Tyrone have some of the answers.
Enda McGinley is playing very well in the middle and with Joe McMahon selected at wing forward the team is obviously going to make a big effort at disruption in an area where Dublin have been thriving.
The Ulster team's defence is adaptable and contains proven man markers, and Conor Gormley has played well on Brogan before.
Dublin's defence has been the least-settled aspect of the team. David Henry has been playing well at corner back and Paul Griffin has a match under his belt but the biggest thing the team has going for it here is the weakness of Tyrone when going forward.
Colm McCullagh is hard-working and committed but lacks pace and physical presence - two big drawbacks when playing Dublin. Cavanagh needs a supply or else he'll have to move back out. That sort of fluidity would suit Ross McConnell.
Maybe the weather could scramble match assumptions but given the quality of the ball played by Kerry and Galway in last week's deluge there is no evidence that the surface is going to turn this into a lottery.
Guidelines
In the last episode:Three years ago Dublin helped Mickey
Harte discover his optimum line-up at half-time in the drawn quarter-final. Tyrone went on to win the replay comfortably and take the All-Ireland.
Since then there have been a couple of NFL matches - high profile at times for the wrong reasons - but Dublin haven't beaten their opponents in championship since the 1995 All-Ireland final.
You bet : Dublin are odds-on 1/3 to win with Tyrone at 3/1 and the draw at 8/1. On the handicap Dublin (-3) are available at 5/6 and Tyrone (+1) at 6/5.
On your marks : There was some surprise at the return of
Ross McConnell but the centrefielder-turned-full back should have the equipment to mark Seán Cavanagh, particularly if the Tyrone man drops deep. Under high ball and feeding off breaks, the Dubliner will do all right; tight marking is the question mark.
Gaining ground : This is the counties' fourth meeting at Croke Park in the past four seasons: the other three being the 2005 quarter-final draw and replay and last year's NFL match to launch the venue's floodlights, which could be in use again this afternoon if the gloomier weather forecasts prove accurate.
Just the ticket : Sold out.
Crystal gazing : Tyrone won't win this year's All-Ireland but the consensus view is that they may have one big performance left. Sufficient reason to oppose Dublin? Not really.
