However, the Tyrone full-back feels his side can cash in on the momentum gained through weekly matches in the road towards the gateway to the Super 8s.

“They have had two weeks to prepare for this game so they are bound to be fresh. Both sides though only found out the draw on Monday so we have had the same time to prepare for each other,” he said.

“No doubt they have trained hard in those two weeks but at the same time we have had a couple of competitive games which is every bit as good and fingers crossed we have come through those without any injuries and are looking forward to Saturday.”

The Red Hands are fancied to overcome the Rebels and take their place in the round robin All-Ireland quarter-final series, but McNamee warned that the Championship has thrown up its fair share of shocks this summer.

“Everyone is just one game away from the Super 8s now so there is a lot at stake and I believe that there is little between any of the sides.

“You only have to look at Kildare last weekend beating Mayo, a Kildare side that lost in the Leinster Championship to Carlow while Fermanagh did very well to reach an Ulster final.”

And the Aghyaran clubman expects Cork pride to drive Ronan McCarthy’s men to deliver a defiant response to the criticism that followed their heavy loss to the Kingdom in last month’s provincial decider.

Cork didn’t do themselves justice in the Munster final although it has to be said that they came up against a very good Kerry side. They have a good record against Tyrone and they certainly won’t fear us.

McNamee was a teenage spectator at the last Championship meeting of Tyrone and Cork, with the Munster men defeating the reigning All-Ireland champions in the 2009 All-Ireland semi-final.

The only previous meeting of the sides, back in the 1970s, also resulted in a semi-final win for the Rebel County.

“I was at Croke Park that day as a spectator and the one thing that stood out to be that day was the pace with which they played the game, especially their half-forwards.

“Tyrone were defending All-Ireland champions that day but Cork deserved to win and it was almost like a changing of the guard because they may have lost in the final that year but came back 12 months later to beat Down and win the Sam Maguire.”

And the Red Hands have an uninspiring league record against Cork as well, struggling for NFL points in recent seasons both home and away.

Our track record against them wouldn’t be that good. They beat us handy enough a couple of times in the league in Omagh while we drew with them a few years ago in Cork. They are always very tough opponents and are always strong and physical and full of pace.

But he added: “We have one more game to win and then we are in it. We never looked past Cavan to be fair just the same as last week we never looked past Carlow.

“You have to take it one game at a time. The train keeps going yes, and it’s good to be a part of something like it. When you are young you want to play for your county and it’s great to represent them.”