Armagh come into Sunday's All-Ireland final on a high but they know they will have to be at their best if they are to stand any chance of defeating Padraic Joyce's Galway.
Kieran McGeeney's Armagh took a thrilling semi-final victory over Kerry a fortnight ago, sending the Orchard County into their first All-Ireland final in 21 years.
Hoping to bring Sam Maguire back to the county for just the second time, Armagh are faced with a familiar opponent in Sunday's decider.
This will be the fourth meeting of Armagh and Galway in just three championship summers, with one win each and one draw across the previous three clashes.
With both counties trending upwards in form across this season's championship, the final is balanced on a knife-edge, and it is likely to be a game which comes down to fine margins.
Dublin legend Dean Rock believes that the battle around kickouts could be a chance for Armagh to tip the scales in their favour.
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Dean Rock believes kickout battle could be Armagh's chance at All-Ireland glory
25 July 2024; The Sam Maguire Cup pictured with the jerseys of Armagh and Galway ahead of the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship final between Armagh and Galway at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile
Armagh enjoyed a remarkable dominance of kickouts in the latter stages of their semi-final victory over Kerry, claiming almost every ball in the second half of extra-time.
Writing in his column in the Irish Times, eight-time All-Ireland champion Dean Rock suggested that the aerial battle could be Armagh's big chance in what is set to be an incredibly tight contest.
This could be the area that shifts the pendulum slightly in Armagh’s favour. I think they have the potential to get more joy from turnovers by pushing up on the Galway kickout, creating goalscoring opportunities.
I can also see Armagh coming away from the midfield battleground with a decent amount of breaking and contested ball.
They are a battle-hardened group, so if Armagh can win a fair share of their own kickouts and take a couple of Galway’s too, that could be the difference in what is likely to be a very tight game.
If Armagh can assert the same level of dominance over kickouts as they did against Kerry, they will be difficult to stop. However, they know all too well the threat that Galway pose, having been eliminated by the Tribesmen in heartbreaking fashion in the epic 2022 quarter-final.
Sunday's final is set up to be another humdinger after last week's classic decider in the hurling. Throw-in at Croke Park is at 3:30pm.
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