Galway and Derry clash has all the ingredients of a classic

If we consider the football so far this year – national league and provincial championships – it is a much shorter list to compile the poor games than it is the good ones, that really is something.

Salivating over your own game is something for the hurling fraternity, us of the big ball code are obviously much more predisposed to bemoaning our code than seeing the positives. These last few weeks, even with plenty of teams setting up defensively, the games have been much more than the clichéd 'intriguing'.

The provincial competitions have undoubtedly received a much-needed boost over the past month yet over the next few weeks their increasing irrelevance in the overall story of the summer will, I feel, become clear.

For the key big hitters, the perception is this stage of the year is what they’ve been building for. Dublin’s scheduling of their training camp for the past week and Jack O’Connor’s ‘the real championship starts now’ comment after Kerry’s Munster win says it all about their mindset.

That eyes-on-the-prize focus will be all the clearer in these opening group games where the value of first place is a clear learning point from last year.

Of course, sods law has meant that Galway and Donegal, winners of the more competitive provincials, have also landed into the toughest opening games. Those ties against Derry and Tyrone respectively have plenty of potential to remove the sheen from their newly gathered silverware.

First up this weekend Derry re-enter the fray against Galway in Salthill. As the attention, hype and glamour was falling on the provincial finals, Derry have been away refocusing their attentions.

I’ve been there before with Mickey Harte, he knows better than anyone how to circle the wagons and come out