Farrell will start for Dublin

Dublin have made two changes for Saturday's All-Ireland quarter-final replay against Donegal. There are also a number of positional switches in the team announced last night.

Former captain Dessie Farrell and Darren Magee come into the side at the expense of Shane Ryan and Darren Homan. Although the return of Farrell was flagged in some quarters, it is still a bit of a surprise given the injury difficulties with which he has been struggling.

So far his contribution to matches has been limited to final quarter appearances but manager Tommy Lyons - restored to full vigour himself - has made it clear that the Na Fianna stalwart was regaining fitness and likely to press for inclusion.

Shane Ryan's omission runs counter to the management's stated satisfaction with the player's role as a physical focus on the 40, but with Farrell back to fitness, his place came under pressure. Although John McNally is named at centre forward, Farrell is a more likely starter there.

Homan's dropping is easily understood. After a fine season last year at the end of which he was unlucky not to secure an All Star nomination, he has struggled to emulate that form. Darren Magee obviously did enough in the drawn match when coming on as a replacement to mark Paul McGonigle, Donegal's third centrefielder, to merit inclusion from the start.

The positional switches are harder to figure out. Whereas Coman Goggins got roasted by Adrian Sweeney, his apparent switch to the wing means that Peadar Andrews drops to the corner, a position that carries unhappy memories of the 1999 Leinster final when he struggled to cope with Ollie Murphy in the same corner.

In fairness to Andrews he survived a rocky start on Brian Roper in the drawn match and finished the stronger.

Paul Casey, who was replaced because of an early injury, has recovered and proved his fitness. Donegal will select tonight.

The Dublin county board will be selling stand and family tickets on Friday from 11.0 in the morning until 7.0 in the evening from the ticket office in Croke Park, situated at the rear of the Cusack Stand. Tickets will not be available from Parnell Park for this game.

The Limerick County Board has agreed to go back to Thurles next Wednesday for their Munster under-21 hurling final replay against Tipperary. The drawn match was played at the same venue last Wednesday but at the moment Limerick do not have use of the Gaelic Grounds because of the redevelopment work there.

Approaches are to be made to the GAC to have the All-Ireland semi-final put back by one week.

Meanwhile, only four clubs have responded to an invitation from the Limerick County Board for nominations for the position of senior hurling manager.

DUBLIN (SF v Donegal): S Cluxton; B Cahill, P Christie, P Andrews; P Casey, J Magee, C Goggins; D Magee, C Whelan; S Connell, J McNally, C Moran; A Brogan, R Cosgrove, D Farrell.