The game of the weekend is in Cooraclare on Sunday when Clare entertain Wexford. Both these sides were impressive in their opening games with victories over Sligo and Offaly respectively. Down at the end other end two sides that lost last weekend will be looking to pick up points this weekend when Down take on Sligo in Newry.
Clare v Wexford – Sunday 29th January, Cooroclare at 2pm
Both sides picked up wins last weekend and will hope to continue their winning start to the league. Clare were impressive in their fine win over Sligo while Wexford overcame the concession of two early goals to defeat Offaly.
Clare were relegated from Division 2 last year while Wexford lost the Division 3 final to Roscommon so both counties will be looking to reach the league final. It has the makings of being a good game.
Down v Sligo – Sunday 29th January, Pairc Esler at 2pm
These two sides fell to disappointing defeats in their opening games against sides that harbour promotion hopes.
Down found the going tough against Kildare while Sligo were no match for Clare. Both sides will be looking for a win to move up the table.
Offaly v Louth – Sunday 29th January, Bretland Park, Clara at 2pm
Offaly lost their opening game fixture while Louth recorded a win. Offaly scored two early goals against Wexford but were beaten by nine points in the end. Louth defeated a young Longford side in Darver.
It’s a home game for Offaly and they’ll be hoping home advantage counts while Louth will want to build on last weekend’s impressive win over Longford.
Kildare v Longford – Sunday 29th January, Manguard Plus Centre of Excellence at 2pm
The last time these two sides met was in the All-Ireland Intermediate Championship last year with Longford recording an excellent win over Kildare. It is all change for Longford with a new manager in place and last year’s manager Brian Noonan coach with former manager Diane O’Hora.
Kildare had an easy win over Down in their opening game. A top two finish is what the Lilywhites will hope for. A young Longford side fell to Louth in their opening game. It was a tough learning curve for the Midlanders. They’ll be looking for a good performance against Kildare.
Deniese O'Flaherty
Deniese is a freelance sports journalist/broadcaster. She has worked for several local and national media outlets. GAA and soccer are her great loves and she also follows rugby league and snooker. She's a big supporter of her local clubs St. Mary's GAA Granard and Longford Town. She also follows Celtic, Liverpool and Leeds Rhinos. She presented and produced a popular sports podcast last year where she interviewed Ray Houghton, Chris Kamara and John Hartson. Deniese is currently Head of Communications for Boccia Ireland