AHEAD OF THIS WEEKEND’S closing round of the group stages of the All-Ireland football championship, we take a look at the task ahead for each county.
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Group 1
1. Armagh
Top of the table after winning both games against Westmeath and Derry.
Fears of a post-Ulster final slump after losing to Donegal on penalties were unfounded. Hit a serious groove of form against Derry and tore them asunder with three goals.
Confidence is high and with a healthy scoring difference, they will go straight through to the quarter finals if they avoid defeat to Galway on Sunday.
2. Galway
For a while there, it looked as if Pádraic Joyce had played an absolute blinder in getting through a patchy league, throwing bum steers every direction while nursing the stricken back to full fitness. But a Connacht title and wins over Derry and Westmeath has come at a cost with injuries. A win over Armagh gives them the top spot, otherwise they are in the preliminary quarter-finals.
3. Derry
Who would have thought a couple of months back that Derry would have been staring into the abyss after three straight defeats to Donegal, Galway and Armagh and nine goals conceded?
A win over Westmeath will be enough to make it to a preliminary quarter-final. They should manage it, but nothing is certain.
4. Westmeath
A preliminary round loss to Wicklow in Leinster was a brutal result for this group of players. The Division 3 champions have yet to recover, with losses to Armagh away and Galway at home.
Regardless of how they set up, their scoring rate has been awful, with 0-11 against Armagh and Galway and just 1-11 against Wicklow. Derry should knock them out here.
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Group 2
1. Dublin
Another summer of laying waste to all in front of them, Dublin’s mid-season training camp in Portugal that commenced the day after they won the Leinster title appears well-timed. They just need a point from this weekend against Mayo to retain top spot in their group, given their +31 score difference.
2. Mayo
Solid throughout the year though fell on the wrong side of the result in the Connacht final.
With Paddy Durcan gone through injury, a major part of their attack has been blunted. If they were being cute here, they could rest their frontline players and attack the season from a preliminary quarter-final without punching themselves out in a vain attempt to beat Dublin.
3. Roscommon
There’s still a pulse. Beaten by Mayo in Connacht, they probably winced when they were draw in the same group.
After two defeats it all comes down to a sort-of local skirmish against Cavan in Longford. A winner-takes-all for the preliminary quarter-final slot.
4. Cavan
Losing Paddy Lynch has felt like the bottom falling out of the bucket for Raymond Galligan in his first year of managing his county.
So much of his gameplan was about maximising the shooting prowess of the Crosserlough man. Without him they are much reduced. A win over Roscommon will still extend their season for another week.
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Group 3
1. Cork
A side that looked clueless against Donegal in January, suddenly looks dangerous after doing a number on Donegal when it really mattered in a wedged Pairc Ui Rinn.
Avoid defeat to Tyrone and they stay top. Tyrone and Donegal wins mean all three will be on four points and score difference will sort it out from there.
2. Tyrone
Stuttering and spluttering their way through this championship, Tyrone have been wildly inconsistent even within halves of football.
Have Cork in Tullamore on Saturday. A Donegal win over Clare will guarantee the Red Hands’ passage to the preliminary quarter-finals. A handsome win could see them top the group.
3. Donegal
After the second win over Tyrone in Ballybofey, the tee-up pieces for possible All-Ireland champions were everywhere. A defeat to Cork has led to more cautious assessments, and a recognition that keeping a fit panel is critical.
Should beat Clare, the margin involved will be the difference between a preliminary, or a quarter-final proper.
4. Clare
Without a point in last year’s group stages when put in with the Ulster-centric pot of Derry, Donegal and Monaghan, Clare have struggled in this year’s championship too.
A seven-point loss to Kerry in the Munster final had some credibility, a two-point defeat to Cork had even more but their form against Tyrone was abysmal and a recent challenge game against Down was a mess. A win over Donegal brings them through if Tyrone can nick a point or more against Cork. But it’s extremely doubtful.
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Group 4
1. Kerry
Apart from an initial settling-in period against a Cork side that have since gone on to prove their worth, Kerry ambled in a very traditional way to the Munster title.
Beat Monaghan by ten and Meath by 15 and still have had to listen to complaints. Avoid defeat against Louth and top-spot is theirs.
2. Louth
Ger Brennan has received some deserved praise for his tactical acumen this season. Reaching the Leinster final brought wins over Wexford and Kildare, and a hugely credible performance against Dublin was impressive.
Already through to the preliminary quarter-finals, but a win over Kerry would leave them topping the group.
3. Monaghan
The opening day defeat to Cavan in Ulster feels like another season ago, played on a day of wooly hats and winter coats. After a limp loss to Kerry in Killarney, things improved with a draw against Louth. Avoiding a loss to Meath gets them into the preliminary quarter-final.
4. Meath
Under Colm O’Rourke, Meath have not progressed and many within the county believe the recent promising group of minors and coaching structures have been eroded.
A 16-point loss to Dublin has been followed by a 10-point defeat to Louth and 15-point reversal against Kerry.
A win over Monaghan turns it around. But it feels unlikely.
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- An earlier version of this article incorrectly said Tyrone were playing Cork on Sunday
