Ciaran Whelan believes Mayo will have to throw a spanner in the works if they are to tear up the script against Kerry on Sunday and advance to the All-Ireland SFC semi-finals.

The former Dublin star feels that the Westerners should consider starting Aidan O’Shea at full-forward against the Kingdom as it could see the Munster champions reconsidering their tactics at Croke Park.

Speaking on the RTE GAA Podcast, Whelan said he’s looking forward to the showdown between the two teams and expects tough battles on both sides of the pitch.

"Who’s going to match up with David Clifford, Paudie Clifford or Seanie O’Shea?" asked Whelan. "Mayo have great defenders, but when you look at the match-ups at the other end of the field, there’s nothing there that really frightens you from a Kerry perspective.

"We don’t know if Ryan O’Donoghue is going to play. Cillian O’Connor is back in there but he may have lost a bit of pace. He still has the smartness and the intelligence. But that sticks out as a different threat at either end of the field.

"James Horan has been very predictable but they need to do something different this weekend. Would he spook Jack O’Connor if he stuck Aidan O’Shea in on the edge of the square?

"Even if they put a couple of balls in in the opening ten minutes, and even if they didn’t win them, it refocuses the Kerry management mindset, distracts them and it just offers something different."

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