By Paul Keane

Back when he was kicking scores for fun, winning All-Ireland and Ulster titles and captaining Armagh, Stevie McDonnell would have thrived on an occasion like Sunday's trip to Ballybofey.

The Ulster SFC quarter-final tie between Armagh and Donegal has it all; from the promise of high quality to the guarantee of ultra intensity.

Last month, the counties met in the final round of the Allianz League in Letterkenny and Donegal's one-point win ensured that they finished deadlocked in the Division 1 league table with Armagh on seven points apiece. Clearly there is little to pick between two evenly matched teams who, as was displayed when tempers boiled over at one stage during that league encounter, have developed a simmering rivalry.

This one could be hot and heavy at times so?

"You would want it to be hot and heavy this weekend, it's an Ulster championship match," said McDonnell. "If it wasn't hot and heavy you'd be asking questions, of both teams. There's a lot at stake. Donegal want to get back to the top table of Ulster football and Armagh certainly want to get back to the top table of Ulster football, it's been too long from an Armagh point of view."

Donegal opted for O'Donnell Park and Letterkenny when the sides met in that Round 7 league game. Presumably they weren't too keen on giving Armagh a pre-Championship run out in Ballybofey?

"Listen, Donegal had every right to do that," said McDonnell. "I don't think that's going to have any consequences on this weekend whatsoever. Armagh players have played in Ballybofey before so they know the surroundings, they know what to expect, they've played Championship games there in the past so they know what they're going into. Donegal were within their own rights to go ahead and move that game so I would have absolutely no qualms about that whatsoever."

Sunday's winners will face Antrim or Cavan in the semi-finals, two counties that operated in Division 3 and Division 4 respectively this season. The feeling will be that whoever comes out of Ballybofey with the win may have a clear path to an Ulster final.

"It's alright in saying that but Armagh believed they had a clear path to an Ulster final last year and Monaghan put an end to that," responded McDonnell. "Armagh have to learn from that. Whichever team does win, you would fancy them to make it to an Ulster final but that can never be guaranteed when it comes to Ulster football.

"There's six or seven very, very competitive teams that will fancy their chances of getting to an Ulster final and regardless of the outcome of this Sunday, either team that is on the right side of the result will have a tough semi-final to prepare for. We know that's not going to be easy either."

McDonnell noted how the history between Armagh and Donegal is that one county tends to dominate the exchanges for a decade or so, then the other one will take over. Donegal have been the superior force over the last 10 years or so though the former Ireland captain is hopeful that the trend is turning now, back in Armagh's favour.

"Well, listen, we hope that that is the case," he said. "We believe that playing Division 1 football this year will have helped the team, will have brought them on.

"They have been very competitive in other games, even the games they were defeated in in Division 1 this year. So we would hope that this team is primed and ready to have a good tilt for going for an Ulster title again and who knows where that may take us.

"But going up to Ballybofey and the record that Donegal have had there over the last while, it's not going to be an easy task. But Armagh certainly have a team capable of going up and getting the result."

A trio of Armagh players - Aidan Nugent, Rian O'Neill and Stefan Campbell - are available for the game after successfully appealing against suspensions proposed on the back of the flashpoint during last month's league game.

It remains to be seen how those players react to a less than straightforward buildup to the Championship opener.

"I think the players in mind are strong characters, mentally and physically, and they will have trained over the last few weeks expecting to be missing the game," said McDonnell. "But now it's with the added bonus of not missing the game and that will give them a lot of motivation and confidence going into this weekend."

* Electric Ireland has announced a five-year extension to its sponsorship of the Electric Ireland GAA minor championships and Electric Ireland Higher Education GAA leagues and championships. Electric Ireland will also become the title sponsor of developmental hurling competition the Electric Ireland Celtic Challenge.