This weekend sees Round 2 of the Smith Monumentals Intermediate Championship take place with five games down for decision.
The meeting of local rivals Allen Gaels and Kiltubrid is arguably the tie of the round but there will be plenty of performances to enjoy across all games. We’ll have full audio coverage of every one of these games on FinalWhistle.ie and Leitrim GAA websites.
Drumreilly will set the ball rolling for Round 2 of the Intermediate Championship when they play Aughavas at home on Friday night.
They’re still heavily reliant on their older grouping players, with veteran Olly Maguire named at centre-back for their last outing against Annaduff. They’ve found the going tough so far after a defeat in that game, but now host an exciting Aughavas side on Friday.
Aughavas were also beaten in that first round at the hands of Aughnasheelin, but impressed at stages through the likes of Seamus Sweeney and Fintan Gallogly. Liam Higgins’ youthful team will go in as favourites but you can never discount Drumreilly team with experienced players like Maguire, John McKeon, Declan Maxwell and the Holohans.
Bornacoola travel to Aughnasheelin for this Round 2 clash on Saturday.
Aughnasheelin, who are expected to be there or there abouts when the silverware gets handed out, take on surprise package Bornacoola who got an upset win over Kiltubrid last week. It will be interesting to see how Bornacoola build on that opening victory and whether they can continue to beat teams stronger than them on paper.
Saturday will tell if that materialises or not, with the performances of Cian Mallon, Damian Moran, and Ollie Vaughan expected to be key once more. Aughnasheelin on the same note have been impressive in both the league and championship campaigns so far. With Fintan Fitzpatrick, Aaron Hoare, the Cullens, and goalkeeper Kevin McWeeney all putting on strong displays in the Aughavas win, they will be a tough nut to crack in Round 2.
Kiltubrid host Allen Gaels in the championship christening of their new-look Gaelic grounds on Saturday. The new ground is a credit to the community and club and will likely see many big championship performances down through the years.
First they must get by intermediate title favourites Allen Gaels, who got a big result in the opening round against Drumkeeran. They face the neighbours on the other side now, with the free-scoring form of Ciaran Walsh and Colin Moran likely to carry over to Round 2. The side coming from the biggest town at intermediate grade, Kiltubrid will be right up against it.
Kiltubrid find themselves in a tricky spot after the Bornacoola slip up but won’t take that loss lying down, and we expect a big response from them this week. The performance of the McWeeney brothers could be decisive, while Ciaran McTague will welcome the experienced Kealan McKeon back into the squad after he missed out last week.
Allen Gaels will expect to get through this tie, but with the local rivalry coming into play, don’t be surprised to see Kiltubrid come out as victors.
Two weeks after their opening win over Drumreilly, Annaduff are back in action as they visit Ballinaglera on Saturday.
Both sides came away with big victories in Round 1, but Annaduff will fancy their chances at taking the two points on offer. However you can’t count out Ballinaglera who always give 100% effort, especially with the dangerous Reynolds’ and Maguires going forward.
These players are pivotal in attack and well capable of putting up big tally’s at this level. The clash of Dillon Keane at full-back and Enda Maguire at full-forward will potentially be the match-up of the weekend at intermediate grade.
Whoever wins that battle could find themselves on the victorious side. Annaduff are expected to continue their winning form but Ballinglera could snatch a goal at the right time and beat their fancied opponents.
Last year’s junior champions in Mohill’s second string struggled in Round 1 against Ballinaglera. This week they make the trip to the top of Lough Allen in what will be another tough test at Drumkeeran.
Drumkeeran were beat by Allen Gaels and will see this game on Saturday as a good chance to get their campaign off and running. Ballinaglera put up a big score against Mohill so it will be interesting to see if Richard McTiernan’s men can do the same.
Who qualifies for the knockouts in the Intermediate Championship could come down to scoring difference so Drumkeeran will need to approach the game with that intention. Francis Davitt and Colm Clarke provide the quality for them and they will be relied upon again, but it should be routine enough for the home side.
Con Sheehan
21 year old sports journalist from Drogheda. Student at Dublin City University. Drogheda United Correspondent for FinalWhistle.ie