The last time Killeavy and Clan na Gael shared the field in the championship, they were both playing at Intermediate level.
But come Sunday, both teams are just 60 minutes away from reaching the last four of the senior championship.
They are two clubs certainly on the rise and while this year might be a bit soon in terms of winning the championship, reaching the semis would be a huge step in the right direction.
Missing men
For Killeavy, they’ve already experienced getting that far in the competition as they did so as recently as 2020.
Crossmaglen halted their progress that season, just as they did in 2021, but Killeavy have been building nicely.
While they looked best placed to make the breakthrough this year, given their league form, injuries may just curtail their ambitions.
Ciaron O’Hanlon, Lee Rice, Miceal McNamee and Oisin King are all out for the remainder of the season.
Wayne Kieran’s men still have an awful lot of talent in their ranks, but that’s a serious amount of quality removed.
Clan na Gael earned their first win at senior level in 11-years when they saw off Carrickcruppen by two points.
Shane McPartland has become a hugely influential figure for them, and he top scored with 0-5 the last day out.
His ability to switch from midfield to full forward will be noted by Killeavy and he’ll be tracked by a specialised man-marker.
County teammates Conor O’Neill and Stefan Campbell may go toe-to-toe while Aaron McCreanor’s tussle with Paul Quinn is another key matchup.
The Clans will be without youngster Michael McConville, who picked up a straight red card in the first round.
Diarmaid Marsden’s youthful side are certainly going to compete at the top table for the next few years, but this may just be a step to far for them.
