Four more teams will exit the Intermediate Championship this weekend as they playoffs take place across Saturday and Sunday.
Annaghmore v Clann Eireann II – Sat 6 Sept – 3pm – St Paul’s
Following an opening round defeat to Shane O’Neill’s, Clann Eireann IIs have bounced back impressively. The Lurgan men have chalked up back-to-back triumphs over Division 2A league championship Tullysaran and Wolfe Tones.
Clann Eireann IIs have bagged 11 goals across their three championship outings, a stat that will have caught Annaghmore’s eye. Annaghmore go into the contest having lost their last two games to St Paul’s and Grange.
Armagh player Tomas McCormack missed last week’s meeting with Grange, but is expected to be back this weekend. He’ll be a massive addition on his return and he’ll certainly strengthen their hand.
Derrynoose v Wolfe Tones – Sat 6 Sept – 5.30pm – Grange
These sides locked horns in the last round of the Division 2B league campaign just over a month ago. Derrynoose claimed victory on the night, with eight-points to spare in the end, with promotion and the league title wrapped up beforehand.
Paul Hagan’s side carried that form into the championship, earning back-to-back wins over Ballymacnab and Tir na nOg. The first round one-point defeat to Sarsfields ultimately sent Derrynoose through to the playoffs.
Wolfe Tones started the championship with a bang, beating Division 2A league champions Tullysaran in the opening round. They do however go into Saturday’s showdown off the back of defeats to Clann Eireann IIs and Shane O’Neill’s.
Ballymacnab v Keady – Sun 7 Sept – 1.45pm – Clady
During the two league meetings between these two sides, just one-point separated them. Keady edged the first clash by the minimum of margins while a late Dan O’Toole goal rescued a point for the Nab in the second encounter.
Keady will have been disappointed to have lost their opening round clash with Forkhill, knocking them off top spot. They bounced back brilliantly however with wins against Collegeland and Whitecross.
Ballymacnab started the campaign on the front foot with a big win over Tir na nOg but have suffered two consecutive defeats since. Derrynoose and Sarsfields both got the better of the Nab in their last two outings.
St Paul’s v Whitecross – Sun 7 Sept – 3.30pm – Abbey Park
Both teams experienced just one defeat in their respective championship groups. Whitecross drew two of their three outings while St Paul’s earned victories over both Annaghmore and Belleek.
St Paul’s remain one of the favourites for the throne and have been racking up big scores throughout the campaign. Sharpshooter Eoin McConville is the leading scorer in the championship with 1-25 across three games.
Whitecross suffered their first defeat of the campaign as they lost out to Keady by three-points last weekend. They were relegated from Division 2A, and suffered two league defeats to St Paul’s, so they’ll look to make it third time lucky.
