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Sunday, January 28 at 2pm

National League: Division 1

Kerry v Donegal

(Fitzgerald Stadium)

1. Clifford set to make his debut

There has surely never been a more hotly anticipated Kerry debut. David Clifford grabbed national headlines in 2017 with a string of remarkable outings with the Kerry minors, most notably his four-goal masterclass in the All-Ireland Final, and it now appears as though the prodigious youngster is all set to make his first ever appearance for the Kerry seniors. Not for the first time in his fledgling career, all eyes will be on Clifford

2. New faces

At the end of last season, Kerry manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice was criticised in certain quarters for not introducing enough young talent to the fold. Only he will know if these complaints had any real effect on his thinking but there definitely seems to be a fresher look to the 2018 Kerry panel.

Apart from Clifford, Kenmare forward Seán O’Shea is also expected to feature prominently. A number of other stars from the successful minor and under 21 teams of the last few years are part of the set-up and some are likely to get their chance against Donegal.

With all the new faces in the squad, it’s very difficult to predict how Kerry will line out - and perform - on Sunday.

3. Can Kerry retain their crown?

Last April’s superb league final victory over Dublin was the highlight of Kerry’s year and players and fans will be hoping for more of the same in 2018. Finally beating the Dubs was a real monkey off the back and, although the defeat to Mayo in the All-Ireland semi-final replay put a huge damper on things, more league success would set Kerry up well for the Championship. 

4. How many Kerry fans will turn up?

It might sound like an unusual question but selector Mikey Sheehy was vocal in his criticism of Kerry fans in recent weeks, calling their support in last year’s semi-final replay “shocking”.

The spotlight will be on Kerry fans this year and it will be interesting to see how many people travel to games throughout the league campaign. Sunday’s match is at home in Killarney so a decent crowd, by league standards, is expected.

Kerry fans have a well-deserved reputation for only showing up to “big” games, there’s no doubt about that, but there is also an onus on the team to perform and get fans excited.

5. Donegal hoping for an improved 2018

2017 came to an inauspicious end for Donegal when they crashed out in Round 4 of the qualifiers. The defeat to Galway in Markiewicz Park in July will have left a very sour taste in the mouth as the 2012 champions completely fell apart, eventually losing by a whopping 15-points (0-14 to 4-17).

This certainly seems to be a side in demise: last year was the first time they failed to make at least the Ulster Final and the quarter final of the All-Ireland since 2010.

Their form in last year’s league campaign had been more promising. They recovered from an opening day loss to Kerry in Letterkenny to finish joint second on eight points with Kerry, Monaghan and Mayo, the Kingdom advancing to the final thanks to their superior points difference.

The league will be a good platform to build momentum before the ultra-competitive Ulster Championship.