Allianz Football League Division One, round one
Kerry v Donegal (Sunday, Fitzgerald Stadium, 1.45pm, live on TG4)
The new football playing rules could make modern day Gaelic football a bit like hurling as result of the way the game will be speeded up.
That’s the view of Donegal manager Jim McGuinness as his team makes the long trip to Killarney on Sunday in the opening round of the Allianz Football League.
Donegal have played a number of in-house challenge matches as players and management try to come to grips with this brave new world.
The Donegal manager said their early experiences are that things are much quicker and that games will not really settling into a pattern.
He added that much more will be demanded of players with games themselves played at a higher pace. The new rules have meant a vastly changed football landscape with merciless intensity according to the All-Ireland winning manager, who returned to the Donegal hotseat last year.
“We’ve noticed already that it’s a completely different game,” McGuinness said.
“And this is the middle of winter but when you get into the dry sod and competitive Championship matches, there is literally no hiding place.
“They could be doing maybe 30, 35, even 40 per cent more than we are doing.”
McGuinness added that there was no place to hide under the new rules.
“It’s more intensive running, and there’s nowhere to hide.
“Look at the kick-out, the transition, the turnover and it’s going to be very hard to defend under fatigue.
“I don’t know if five subs will be enough. We got a document that was sent out before to the rules coming through.
“One of the pages at the end was talking about six subs but I don’t know if that ever came up and I would’ve thought that would’ve been one of the first ones.
“I’m very surprised the GPA didn’t have their finger on the pulse there, from the player welfare point of view.
“You’re going to see now in the next few weeks.
“It’s heavy going and it’s going to be week-to-week and you’re going to need depth.
“Games never really settle. Will it settle in a pattern towards the end of the NFL or is the new reality?
“Or maybe, the game is just going to be relentless.
“We’re playing a version of hurling and that could be the case as well that could very well be the case.
“There are two-pointers, far more transitional football and defending against fewer players, with smarts of trying to break down 15. You’d expect the scoring numbers to be going away up.”
Killarney is never an easy place to go and it would be a huge fillip for Donegal if they could come away with two points.
And speculation is rife in Tír Chonaill at the prospect of the talismanic Michael Murphy making a return to the colours at some point in the game.
His return and the return of Odhran McFadden-Ferry, Eoin McHugh, and Eoghan McGettigan has given McGuinnness some added depth.
“We need running power to survive in this game and all of those lads who come in and the first thing we need to do is to build up Michael Murphy, Odhran McFadden-Ferry, Eoin McHugh and Eoghan McGettigan,” McGuinness said.
“We need to get them ready to be competitive and then we can start having those conversations.
“But Michael can do a number of jobs and he is very versatile as he has shown over the years.”
“That is the same for all of them. They will need to be able to do a couple of jobs either defensively or attacking.
“Full-forwards will be playing inside but they will also have to be able to give other players a breather.
“But the truth of the matter is that we just don’t know and counties will be learning off each other as the National League goes on.