Compiled by GAVIN CUMMISKEY and MALACHY CLERKIN
TODAY
TIPPERARY v ANTRIM, Semple Stadium, Thurles, 3pm
Tipperary have an immediate edge due to the withdrawal of Antrim captain Aodhan Gallagher from the panel, citing personal reasons, after last week’s surprise victory over Galway. In stark contrast, Tipperary are settling into a nice rhythm of hosting teams in Thurles.
Their only change sees Alan Maloney named at centre forward ahead of Brian Mulvihill but that appears to be a swappable position between the pair.
We know Tipperary are a coming force in football. Their minor batch is better than the team that won last year's All-Ireland (mainly because eight of them have returned). They have designs on transferring that success up to senior within a stated period. This will not happen this year or next and while Antrim have the fire-power to spoil a potentially successful Tipp campaign, they won't .
TIPPERARY: P Fitzgerald; A Morrissey, P Codd, C McDonald; B Fox, R Kiely, A Campbell; G Hannigan, H Coghlan; R Ryan, A Maloney, D Leahy; M Quinlivan, P Acheson, P Austin.
ANTRIM: TBC
Referee: E Kinsella (Laois).
KILDARE v LIMERICK, Portlaoise, 7pm
They don’t help themselves, do they? Just when everyone was putting the Seánie Show behind them, Kildare dream up the outlandish notion they’re being got at with this game being moved to Portlaoise away from the 4,000-capacity Newbridge.
Building a siege mentality is all very well if you have the troops to fight on that footing but Kildare’s squad is made up of sound, easy-going footballers, not the sort of no-one-likes-us-we-don’t-care gargoyles more suited to flipping the bird to the world. The football takes over now.
They should have enough of it to come through here, albeit most people are overlooking the fact Limerick got just as far as they did in last year’s All-Ireland series and only went down to an extra-time defeat against Cork in the last 12 the year before. Add in the fact they eked out an away win against a highly-promising Longford side last weekend and quite why there’s an assumption they will provide the flat track on which Kildare will bully them is a mystery.
Limerick’s strength is the pressure they put on by flooding the midfield, an area where Meath showed Kildare are feeling their way. Johnny McCarthy will give Tomás O’Connor plenty of it at full back and Ian Ryan and Ger Collins will need watching in attack.
Limerick have been scoring at an average of 15 points a game so they’re no soft touch. Kildare to come through, but not at their ease.
KILDARE: S Connolly; A Mac Lochlainn, P Kelly, H McGrillen; E Bolton, M O’Flaherty, E Doyle; M Foley, R Kelly; E O’Flaherty, M Conway, A Smith; J Doyle (capt), T O’Connor, J Kavanagh.
LIMERICK: S Scanlon; A Lane, J McCarthy, L O’Dwyer; J Riordan, S Lucey, P Ranahan; J Donovan, S Buckley; E O’Connor, S Kelly, P Browne; G Collins (capt), S O’Carroll, I Ryan.
LEITRIM v LAOIS, Carrick-on-Shannon, 7pm
Even with the notoriously volatile Laois footballers under his command, the expectation has been the personality of Justin McNulty would become evident in the manner the team adopted. Finally, there were some signs in the defeat of Monaghan. More is required again.
Now comes the easier challenge, in theory anyway, as Connacht’s poorest county need to be put away by a collection of individual footballers that, on paper, far exceeds what Barney Breen and George Dugdale can field.
The continued absence of full back Kieran Lillis means McNulty sticks with Kevin Meaney on the square’s edge, where he will be expected to curb the influence James Glancy had against Wicklow.
This is a day Laois must show accuracy and industry. When the heavy lifting is done, McNulty can turn to the luxury product that is MJ Tierney as Laois seek to stretch clear in the second half.
Anything else would be considered a retrograde step.
LEITRIM: C McCrann; P Maguire, F McMorrow, A Wynne; C Clarke, E Williams, D Beck; D Sweeney, S Moran; P McGowan, E Mulligan, P Brennan; R Cox, J Glancy, K Conlon.
LAOIS: E Culliton; C Healy, K Meaney, J Kavanagh; D Strong, J O’Loughlin, C Boyle; B Quigley, C Begley; R Munnelly, B Sheehan, G Walsh; D O’Connor, P Clancy, C Kelly.
Referee: R Hickey (Clare)
