EVERY WEEKEND, OUR bumper Friday football preview will give you the who, the what, the why, the when and the where ahead of the weekend’s GAA championship action, as well as statistics from analyst Christy O’Connor.
Here are the four games you can look forward to this weekend. For a chance to win Senior Championship game tickets courtesy of eir, click here.
Tipperary v Armagh
All-Ireland SFC Qualifiers Round 3B
When? Saturday, 5pm
Where? Semple Stadium
TV? Sky Sports 5
Tipperary and Armagh meet for the first time in the championship on Saturday evening in Thurles, but these two counties need no introduction. Division 3 rivals in the league this spring, their promotion battle came down to the final day; Armagh led by four points with five points to play only to be stunned by a Michael Quinlivan goal in injury time – completing a second-half hattrick.
Quinlivan battled through an ankle injury to play the last 20 minutes of Tipp’s super comeback in Cavan last weekend and, while he has not been named to start against Armagh, Premier fans will be waiting anxiously for any indication, however vague, on their star man’s fitness.
Since losing to Down, Armagh have been comfortably better than both Fermanagh and Westmeath, but this Tipp team, at home in Thurles, are likely to represent a stiffer test again. Expect another game that could go down to the final kick.
Christy O’Connor says: After getting hammered by Tyrone in the 2015 qualifiers, Tipperary have won their last two championship qualifier games against Ulster opposition – Derry last year, and Cavan last weekend. They will take even more confidence into Saturday’s clash with Armagh, having beaten them in their crucial last league game in April in the Athletic Grounds to secure promotion to Division 2.
The42′s verdict: Tipperary
Carlow v Monaghan
All-Ireland SFC Qualifiers Round 3B
When? Saturday, 7pm
Where? Dr Cullen Park
TV? Sky Sports 5
Carlow’s championship run to this point has been the perfect summer fairytale, but it’s hard to imagine a situation in which Turlough O’Brien’s side are still standing on Sunday morning at Monaghan’s expense.
An 18-point win against Wexford was the perfect tonic to the Farney’s early exit from the Ulster championship. It’s unlikely that they’ll rack up a similar 3-23 total this weekend – Carlow certainly managed to blunt the Dubs’ edge when they met – but barring a seismic upset, the Ulstermen will take their place in Round 4B.
Christy O’Connor says: For a team always accused of being too dependent on Conor McManus for scores, Monaghan had the highest scoring spread to date in the championship when they had 15 different scorers in last weekend’s qualifier against Wexford.
The42′s verdict: Monaghan
Tyrone v Down
Ulster SFC Final
When? Sunday, 2pm
Where? Clones
TV? RTÉ 2
Tyrone’s defence of their Ulster title to this point, their march to another provincial final and – most importantly – their utter annihilation of Donegal has seen the Red Hand cement their claims as a leading All-Ireland contender.
Down snuck into the championship without fanfare – hardly a surprise considering their recent history of summer flops – and then turned over Monaghan with a savage workrate that must have brought a wry smile to Eamonn Burns’s face. A similar hunger and intensity will go a long way in what’s bound to be a brutal physical battle in Clones on Sunday.
But once Tyrone got the upper hand in their semi-final against Donegal, they played with the ruthlessness of a team out to make a point. If they’re on their game, they’re in a different league.
Christy O’Connor says: In his 27-year unbroken involvement with Tyrone from minor, U21 and senior, Mickey Harte has won 11 Ulster titles. The only Ulster finals a Harte team didn’t win was 1991 minor final against Donegal, and the 2005 senior final, which Tyrone lost to Armagh after a replay.
The level of transition and turnover in personnel in the Down squad has been so huge in the last three seasons that 12 of the players which featured against Monaghan in the Ulster semi-final weren’t involved when Down last played Tyrone in the championship, the drawn and replayed Ulster opening round clash in 2014
The42′s verdict: Tyrone
Dublin v Kildare
Leinster SFC Final
When? Sunday, 4pm
Where? Croke Park
TV? RTÉ 2
There’s no question about who the best two counties in Leinster are this season, and with talk of a crowd in the region of 55,000 set for Croke Park on Sunday, there is a genuine curiosity and excitement for Dublin and Kildare’s first provincial decider since 2009.
It’s hard to know where the All-Ireland champions currently stand by the high standards they have set for themselves in Jim Gavin’s first four seasons. Losing the league final to Kerry was a blow, and they could have been more convincing against Carlow, but faced with relatively meek opposition from Westmeath, they were utterly ruthless.
Kildare, who conceded 5-18 when the sides last met in the championship, won’t need to be warned twice — although Cian O’Neill’s side are an entirely different prospect to the one which turned out in Jason Ryan’s final season. With Division 1 status for next season already in the bag, beating a well-regarded Meath by nine points in the Leinster semi was the best barometer of their potential.
There’s no question that they have improved and evolved in O’Neill’s second season, confident enough to take games to their opponents; the only question now is, how will they tackle the Dubs?
Christy O’Connor says: When Dublin hit 4-29 in their semi-final against Westmeath, it was the highest number of points (white flags) ever scored in a football championship game in Croke Park. In fact, it was the highest number of scores recorded (33) at Headquarters in any game since Kilkenny blitzed Waterford for 3-30 in the 2008 All-Ireland hurling final.
Kildare will be looking to try to alter their dire modern record in Croke Park in this decade. Since losing to Donegal in the 2011 All-Ireland quarter-final, Kildare have only won four of their last 20 league and championship games at the venue. Kildare’s only win there in their last eight attempts was last year’s one-point victory against Wexford in the Leinster quarter-final.
The42′s verdict: Dublin
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