Paul Finlay: Monaghan must trust themselves for 'enormous task' of facing Dublin

Paul Finlay knows that Monaghan are up against it in Saturday's All-Ireland semi-final clash with Dublin but he feels that the Oriel County must not try to reinvent the wheel if they are to spring an upset.

"The county is buzzing," he told RTÉ Sport ahead of Monaghan's first semi-final since 2018. "Everybody’s in great form and looking forward to it.

"I can only assume Monaghan's preparation will be the same as per other matches. You can't just change what has got you here because of the opposition.

"It's an enormous task but Monaghan just have to prepare as best they can, the way they have for all the other games: match-ups, talk about how they want to defend, attack, want the kick-outs to go. The guys will be aware of the task but it’s still a game of football, and you have to go out and try to get the absolute best out of yourself.

"That’s what Monaghan will be focusing on. Play to the top of their ability and see where that gets them. If you can leave that pitch knowing you gave it everything, the result looks after itself. Most times when you’re able to do that you end up with a good result but at this level, in some cases…

"They are going to have to try and get a few scores on the board early and be watertight at the back.

"Talking about it and doing it are totally different because they are coming up against a Dublin team that seem to be hitting form at the right time. They went to a new level in the second half against Mayo and that’s going to be really hard to contain if Dublin come with that sort of game. But what can Monaghan do only prepare for that?"

Finlay, who retired as the county's record scorer in 2016 but still plays for Ballybay, has been impressed with the impact his former team-mate Vinny Corey has made in