I have the feeling Derry are coming back after a long time lost. They were unfortunate not to get out out of D2.
They steamrollered the all Ireland champions and a number of players were prominent, a very good sign.
Plus they have loads of energy.
I would have them as favourites.
Personally, I'd have Derry as favourites for Ulster, even at this point.
As Dreadnought lays out, they've been building towards something.
Let's not get carried away.
In championship terms we've beaten a Tyrone team that didnt show up.
That's it.
We're not even favourites for our next game, let alone Ulster.
Of course, the hope is we can win Ulster, but it's hope and not expectation.
I do agree, we've been building and improving over this last couple of years. Is it enough yet? Time will tell.
On the game itself, I think Derry will set up similarly to how we did against Tyrone. I don't see any major surprises in terms of personnel or positioning. Derry were able to show that they can get scores from other outlets and not just McGuigan which makes it more difficult for Monaghan.
Monaghan will have had time to prepare and won't give away as much ball from kickouts as tyrone did.
It has the makings of a tense, tight low scoring game. They will want to make sure they don't concede frees in the scoring zone. A goal would likely win it.
