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Aidan O'Mahony 'Michael Murphy is becoming harder to mark'

Donegal and Mayo meet in a winner-take-all clash in MacHale Park this Saturday evening as the Sup...



Aidan O'Mahony 'Michael Murphy...
Football

Aidan O'Mahony 'Michael Murphy is becoming harder to mark'

Donegal and Mayo meet in a winner-take-all clash in MacHale Park this Saturday evening as the Super-8s come to what promises to be a pulsating finish. 

With Kerry likely to beat Meath in Navan, only one of these heavyweights can take second place in Group 1 and advance to the semi-final stage.

Michael Murphy, who's arguably Donegal's greatest and most influential player ever, could have a major say in how this game goes.

The 29-year-old Glenswilly man already has 1-21 to his name so far this summer.

Two weeks ago he gave one of his most impressive displays yet, orchestrating so much in an epic where they and Kerry couldn't be separated.

Former Kingdom legend Aidan O'Mahony, speaking to Off The Ball, says it's remarkable how Murphy is actually getting more difficult to mark as he gets older and his game evolves to dizzying new heights.

"He's a big player for them. I think he's gotten even harder to mark now because he goes back into the full-back line and if you're looking at your defensive structure you're saying 'do I follow him down, do I stay back'?

"Himself and Ryan McHugh the last day were unmarkable.

"He's a loop player - he'll get on ball, he'll give the ball off, he'll come the loop again."

O'Mahony had the challenge of trying to keep Murphy in check in the 2014 All-Ireland Final, that Kerry eventually won by three points.

"We'd came in the morning of the game and sit down in a group and you'd be asked what you're going to do that day.

"I said 'I'm going to mark Michael Murphy, I'm going to mark Michael Murphy, I'm going to mark Michael Murphy.

"I remember a lot of the articles saying he was unmarkable that Kerry had no one to mark him, I was 35 years of age at the time - no pressure on me.

"I remember at one stage of the game after about 20 minutes he stood outside the white line on the Hogan Stand and I said 'he's trying to kind of screw my mind here, will I stay, will I go'?

"I just stood beside him. The whole game I just stayed beside him and forgot about everything else.

"That was the whole gameplan.

"When you're a man-marker in a game or you're playing defensively, that's what you do, you forget about the ball."

Murphy finished up that day with four points to his name. O'Mahony paints a clear picture of the frustrations the Donegal Captain can cause even the greatest of markers.

"Anytime he got the ball he gave it off, I just stayed beside him.

I wasn't attracted to the ball.

"But it's one of those roles where you're saying to yourself 'am I in the game?'

"You have to watch him constantly.

"He kicked a point in the second half, I remember, he was about 40 yards out and I was saying 'I'm on top of his toe now but he still kicked it'."

Whether or not Mayo have anyone to stop Murphy will be answered in Saturday evening's showdown where a phenomenal performance will be required to keep him quiet.

Throw in at MacHale Park is at 6pm Saturday 3 August while Meath and Kerry gets underway at the same time in Pairc Tailteann.

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Donegal GAA Michael Murphy