Slightly better mix of Brawn & technique in the forward line for @Fran and a better balance to midfield to aid in any perceived deficiency in the half back line. @Crutches has set up a shoot the lights out formation but in the heat of battle just falls short.
Seeing Conor Fitzgerald’s name appearing in this jars a little.
Strong full back lines but I don’t feel we are watching a championship contender here. Lack of an established free-taker could hurt Fran if he progresses (I think he will).
@Fran has some full-forward line tbf. Although in Daithi Burke, @Crutches probably has one of those marquee full-back players that could hold one of them. Crutches also has a decent half-back line… Lehane could either torch McInerney for pace or just be completely destroyed.
Fran’s half-back line very very strong under a high ball, I wouldn’t be gone on them as distributors though. Same thing applies to his full-back line as Crutches, Conor Fitz just seems very out of place at corner-forward and I’m not sure about Whelan out the field.
Good midfield battle again. There are a lot of similarities between these two teams, but I just slightly prefer the balance of Fran’s team and I’ll give him the edge by a couple of points; primarily because of that firepower inside.