Five talking points ahead of the weekend's GAA action
Cillian Buckley is challenged by Cathal Mannion during the drawn Leinster final
Ahead of a weekend that has
four football qualifiers, two hurling preliminary quarter-finals and the
Leinster SHC final replay, we take a look at the main questions which
will be answered in the coming days.
Can Kilkenny blow the summer wide open?Kilkenny and Galway are looking ahead to the Leinster final replay in Thurles, with many expecting the Tribesmen to improve on last Sunday's showing. However, Brian Cody's men are slowly building game-by-game, and the experience of putting it up to the All-Ireland champions in Croke Park will certainly stand to them.
Brian Cody will have learned a lot from seeing this Galway team up close and personal once again, and will be eager to get his match-ups right. Should the Cats claim the scalp, it would blow the summer wide open.
Joe Canning reacts to a missed opportunity at Croke Park last week
Wexford and Limerick play Westmeath and Carlow respectively, with a place in the All-Ireland quarter-finals on the line. Off the back of four gruelling provincial ties, the Model and Treaty counties are expected to have far too much in reserve for their Joe McDonagh Cup opposition.
Some had concerns as to how competitive this round of games would prove to be in the new format, and it is up to Carlow and Westmeath who are rank outsiders to prove otherwise.
John Kiely will be hoping for his Limerick side to bounce back from the defeat to Clare
The Red Hands have recorded three wins on the bounce, but looked far from convincing in their victories over Meath and Cavan. Is it a case of just doing enough to get over the line, knowing there are bigger challenges ahead? Or should the warning signs be heeded?
The bottom line is that they are not operating at a level that will ruffle feathers in the Super 8s, and they meet a Cork side, written off by many, coming into the tie on the back of a Munster final defeat to Kerry.
It's a dangerous match-up for Mickey Harte's charges, and they must improve dramatically to join Dublin and Donegal in the Super 8s.
Tyrone were far from convincing in their win over Cavan
The Lilywhites face Fermanagh, entering the tie as hot favourites. There are several similarities to their clash with Carlow earlier this summer; Cian O'Neill's side are carrying the weight of expectation against a team who will shut up shop defensively.
Can they back up their remarkable victory over Mayo? Or will the Erne County spoil the party and ensure there will be no more championship football in Newbridge for 2018?
Cian O'Neill will be eager to see his team push on from the win over Mayo
Roscommon come into Round 4 as the only beaten provincial finalists who can be somewhat happy with their showing in their last game. They asked serious questions of a fancied Galway side in the Connacht final, and will take confidence from aspects of the display to Portlaoise.
Kieran McGeeney is a manager with qualifier know-how, perhaps more-so than anyone else in the game. In his time at the helm of Kildare and Armagh, he has overseen 25 wins from 29 qualifier games. The Orchard County come into the tie as underdogs, but wins over Westmeath, Sligo and Clare will give them confidence. There is enough evidence to suggest they should not be written off.
McGeeney knows how to get the job done in the qualifiers
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