GAELIC GAMES:If I was a betting man i'd be keeping my money in my pocket but I believe Kerry can qualify for another All-Ireland final, writes JOHN O'KEEFFE

AS A Kerry man, I have made a concerted effort to look at this game in an objective manner. To be honest, it hasn’t been too difficult. Mayo were very impressive when overcoming Galway and Roscommon in adverse weather conditions to wrestle back the Connacht title.

More importantly, those victories were hugely character-building. It helped them develop the discipline they needed when it was crucial to maintain their shape after the early Cork onslaught in the All-Ireland quarter-final.

There is a calming influence to James Horan that has been reflected in his team’s performances this summer. They have also developed a serious work ethic under his stewardship. There are no prima donnas in this Mayo side. Everyone has rowed in behind the cause. That has an awful lot to do with their progress this year.

Another boon is the youthful enthusiasm is allied by the athletic prowess of their more experienced players. Trevor Mortimer, providing he is fit to play, along with Keith Higgins, Alan Dillon and Andy Moran are formidable players who bring pace to any football match. Horan appears to have found the necessary balance of young footballers and veterans. The most obvious example being the O’Shea brothers’ midfield partnership.

The same compliment would apply to Pat Gilroy’s Dublin and look how Tyrone were ill-equipped to deal with them. The older players in the Kerry camp are forewarned. Age caught up with Tyrone. The pace expected from them was simply not there.

Men like Tom O’Sullivan, Aidan O’Mahony, Eoin Brosnan and the Ó Sés have been on the road for a very long time. They are all blessed with pace too, but the day will eventually come when the legs don’t respond to what the brain is screaming for them to do.

Dublin proved that against Tyrone.

The hype surrounding this Mayo run to an All-Ireland semi-final is nothing like the previous September meetings with Kerry in 2004 and 2006. Such was the expectation and anticipation back then that the adrenaline seemed to have been drained from the Mayo players before they took to the field.

That is no longer evident. The way they finished against Cork, playing with belief and composure, makes them a very dangerous prospect for Kerry tomorrow. It would be foolish to underestimate them.

Kerry are in yet another All-Ireland semi-final, which is a terrific achievement, and another advantage is the panel will feel they have yet to truly atone for last year’s defeat to Down.

But the team that grew accustomed to contesting All-Ireland finals is no longer identifiable. Take midfield. During the winter I firmly expected the eight and nine jerseys to be filled by Séamus Scanlon and David Moran but injury denied this combination a championship campaign together.

Bryan Sheehan and Anthony Maher have been improving with each outing but the freedom and dominance they had against Limerick will not be allowed by Séamus and Aidan O’Shea. I don’t expect to see Sheehan gathering clean ball from kick-outs or drifting forward to take points unmarked.

No, the middle third will be a dog-fight, with every ounce of possession being bitterly contested. More is the pity then, from a Kerry perspective, that Paul Galvin has been unable to shake off a hamstring problem. His arrival would be of huge benefit late in the contest. Instead, Mayo are holding a trump card in reserve – Ronan McGarrity’s depth of knowledge of this standard of football has guaranteed a composure not associated with Mayo at this time of year in the past.

The Kerry bench is a potential weakness. I just don’t see someone of McGarrity’s stature to come in. There are four ways to beat Kerry and at least three of them must be achieved if Mayo are to win.

The first priority must be to stymie the influence of the Ó Sé brothers – particularly Tomás’s surging runs up the wing. He must be tracked and hounded; otherwise he is good for two points. And they tend to come when Kerry are poised to finish off their opponents.

The second priority is equally important. If the O’Sullivans – Darran and Declan – are allowed attack from deep then the Kerry attack becomes irresistible. That concern can be addressed in the fight for possession around midfield.

The other two concerns are familiar and related to each other. If the Kieran Donaghy and Colm Cooper partnership finds the rhythm it has lacked this season then Kerry will score the goals that should win them the game. There will be plenty of route-one ball into Donaghy. The trouble Ger Cafferkey had with Donncha O’Connor – before being switched to the corner – will not have gone unnoticed. He will be targeted.

It is unbelievable that Cooper has only registered a single point in his last two matches. If Mayo silence the Gooch, anything is possible. Mayo must also drive hard at the spine of Kerry’s defence.

When all is said and done, I cannot question the Kerry hunger to make another All-Ireland final. They want to exorcise the Down defeat. The quality of the footballers in their ranks remains powerful. That’s why they should win tomorrow.

If Donaghy and Cooper rediscover their ruthless combination then the goals will follow. If not, Kerry still possess a greater scoring threat than Mayo. If I was a betting man I’d be keeping my money in my pocket but I believe Kerry will progress to another final.