The race for Sam Maguire begins in earnest, as eight teams begin their campaigns, with Kerry and Mayo in Killarney the standout tie this weekend.
Group 4
Clare v Donegal, Saturday May 20th, Cusack Park, 2pm
Clare will look to bounce back from their drubbing to Kerry in the Munster Final, as they host Donegal in Ennis.
Ronan Lannigan and Cian O’Dea come in for Manus Doherty and Dermot Coughlan as they make two changes in defence, hoping to bolster that after a 14 point loss in their last fixture, Clare showed up in Munster after a tough league campaign, now looking for a respectable Championship outing.
Donegal relegated from Div 1 and beaten by Down at the quarter final stage, now hope for a change in fortune as they travel South in the hopes of a positive result, they make four changes from that loss, John Ross Molloy, Odhran Doherty, Rory O’Donnell and Luke McGlynn all make their first championship starts in place of Caolan McColgan, Stephen McMenamin, Jason McGee, and Michael Langan, they need confidence after a torrid year.
Group 1
Kerry v Mayo, Saturday May 20th, Fitzgerald Stadium, 3pm
A real championship battle in Killarney, a mouth watering fixture that is sure to bring action and excitement, with Kerry aiming to start their defence with a win.
The Kingdom lost by seven points in Castlebar when they met in the league, a campaign they finished in fifth spot, since then they won by 20 points over Tipp and 14 over Clare on course for their 86th Munster title, now aiming to start on a positive note as they defend their All Ireland, unchanged from the win in the Gaelic Grounds, they will take stopping.
Mayo won the league this year, but since that day in Croke Park their confidence levels may have taken a knock as they were beaten by Roscommon in Connacht. A six point loss dumping them out early, they now come in here fresh having not played a game since the 9th of April, they have three changes in personnel, David McBrien replaces Eoghan McLaughlin at wing-back, Sam Callinan comes in at corner-back for Donnacha McHugh, while James Carr replaces Tommy Conroy at full-forward.
Group 2
Galway v Tyrone, Saturday May 20th, Pearse Stadium, 5:15pm
Connacht winners Galway begin the hunt to make another All Ireland Final, hosting 2021 winners Tyrone in a big clash out West.
The Tribesmen prevailed by 14 in the decider with Sligo, their biggest test in Connacht came to Roscommon but they still look a real contender, they have lost two games this year, Roscommon in Round 2 of the league along with the three point loss to Mayo, they have been in some tight battles, this tie will be another but they will hope with Paul Conroy back in Midfield, they have enough in the tank.
Tyrone finished with four wins in the league, but were unable to build on that going into Ulster, as Monaghan put them to the sword in the Quarter Finals, now they look to bounce back with a tough ask to beat Galway, they make an interesting switch in the side Joe Oguz replaces Kieran McGeary, however Peter Harte moves to wing-back where McGeary started against Monaghan.
Group 3
Sligo v Kildare, Sunday May 21st, Markievicz Park, 2:30pm
Sligo hope to bounce back quickly from the loss to Galway, as they faced a Kildare side looking to cause trouble in the competition.
On home soil, you feel Sligo certainly have the backing to win this tie, they were beaten well last time out, but can play football and have talented players to get them over the line, back to drawing board since then, they make two changes, Aidan Devaney replacing Daniel Lyons in goal, a switch after Lyons conceded twice in the provincial final, the other sees Patrick O’Connor in at Full-Forward replacing Darragh Cummins.
Kildare scraped the relegation battle in Div 2 but now fight another day, they showed better football in Leinster, beating Wicklow by ten in Navan, before losing by two to Dublin in Croke Park, they have struggled to nail down some momentum this year and now need to put in a positive outing to show their championship credentials, they make one alteration from the Leinster Semi as Paul Cribbin replaces Jack Robinson.
Diarmuid Kearney
Diarmuid Kearney is a freelance Sports Journalist based in Co Kerry. He has more than 5 years experience covering domestic and international soccer for different media organisations, while also working for local and national print and digital organisations covering GAA.