'Donegal must hatch a new plan to beat old rivals Tyrone'

When I was growing up, Donegal and Tyrone always felt like much more than a game.

It's always been a big rivalry in Ulster and I've no doubt this Saturday's Ulster semi-final will be another intense battle.

Tyrone have won the last two championship meetings. Last year, they came to Ballybofey and deservedly beat Donegal to reach the All-Ireland quarter-finals.

The contrast in the mood around Donegal now compared to 12 months ago is obviously stark, but I still don't subscribe to the idea that Donegal are clear favourites to win this weekend.

A lot of people would fancy Donegal because of the win over Derry last week, but I'm expecting a much different type of game in Celtic Park this weekend.

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This time last week, we were sitting here thinking Sunday's semi-final was going to be Derry v Tyrone.

Some 48 hours later, we find ourselves saying Donegal and Armagh are the favourites for Ulster. It goes to show how unpredictable the championship can be.

Tyrone should not be discounted though. They blooded a lot of young lads against Cavan last week - nine championship debutants in all.

Those players now have championship experience under their belt to go with six or seven Division One games.

There's been a lot of chat about the quick turnaround and Tyrone having to go through extra-time, but given the youthfulness in this Tyrone set-up, I think that extra-time battle against Cavan could actually benefit them.

Against Derry, Donegal scored 3-3 off their long kick-outs. It was a huge return, even if they were helped by Derry's naivety on the kick-outs.

I'm not sure exactly how serious Shaun Patton's injury is, but even if he is fit, I can't see him getting as many opportunities to bomb the ball long as he did against Derry.

Derry wanted to press the Donegal kick-out because of the aerial prowess Conor Glass and Brendan Rogers can bring. When I look at Tyrone, I don't quite see that level of aerial ability.

Because of that, I wouldn't be surprised to see Tyrone conceding Donegal's kick-out and saying 'let's see you try and break us down'.

There was so much space in the Derry game and Donegal capitalised. Knowing how that game turned out, Tyrone will take the space away and force Donegal to play a different way.

If they are to beat Tyrone, Donegal may require a more patient, methodical approach than what we saw against Derry.

I was coming away from Celtic Park on Saturday, not only absolutely beaming from ear to ear after Donegal's performance, but thinking Tyrone would get over the line against Cavan the next day.

And for 35, 40 minutes, Tyrone were comfortable. They went eight points up but with Padraig Hampsey being black-carded - unfairly, too, in my opinion - it brought Cavan right back into it.

Cavan got a goal off the back of that and suddenly Tyrone became cautious in possession, having been aggressive earlier in the game.

But it helps when you have someone like Darragh Canavan. He really is unbelievable. When he first broke into the Tyrone team, he was really creative, but he has really taken on the scoring mantle over the past couple of seasons.

He is deadly. Donegal will likely put Brendan McCole on him after his fine marking job on Shane McGuigan but I can imagine Canavan would just be a nightmare to mark.

There was a moment during the Cavan game when he jinked inside the Cavan defensive line, and watching it at pitch level, I nearly put my own hip out watching it.

He has the whole package: low centre of gravity, incredibly close control, accurate shooting from distance and angles and strength.

For Donegal, it's not so much about trying to stop Canavan when he's on the ball. It's more a case of how they can limit the supply to him and restrict the number of times he actually touches the ball.

'Front-footed Armagh should have too much for Down'

With Derry out, Armagh must be thinking they have a big chance of ending a long wait for another Ulster title.

It helps that they're looking good, too. Their first 25 or 30 minutes against Fermanagh was full of appetite and desire. They pressed, turned the ball over and took their scores and were out of sight before Fermanagh had the chance to get going.

You look at the Armagh team and their level of firepower is something to behold. Against Fermanagh, they had seven forwards on the field: Rian O'Neill in midfield and Stefan Campbell, Andrew Murnin, Conor Turbitt, Rory Grugan, Jarly Og Burns and Oisin Conaty.

They attacked with variety and played on the front foot and I expect them to bring a similar approach against Down at Clones on Saturday.

Down were my team to watch out for this year. It's their second year under Conor Laverty and they looked good in Division Three. But after the disappointment of that Division Three final loss to Westmeath, their performance against Antrim wasn't much of an improvement.

This is an important game for Down though. A win here would qualify them for the All-Ireland series, an opportunity they failed to grasp against Westmeath.

It's a massive incentive for this Down side, who could really develop if they were pitted in the All-Ireland against the best teams in the country.

Down have a strong running game and could hurt Armagh, but I just haven't seen enough from their two most recent performances to make me see anything but an Armagh win.

It may not be as one-sided as last year's semi-final between the sides, but Armagh should be awaiting the winners of the Tyrone v Donegal game in the final.

Michael Murphy was speaking to BBC Sport NI's Matt Gault