It’s time for Part Two of our Leinster Senior Football Championship preview as we look at some of the pretenders to Dublin’s throne.
Round One is the focus this weekend as Westmeath face Louth on Saturday, then on Sunday, it’s Wicklow v Laois and Longford v Offaly. Kildare, Dublin and Wexford will face the respective winners of those ties in the quarter finals while Meath and Carlow have already been drawn together in the last eight.
After Part One yesterday, here’s our look at the rest of the contenders for the Leinster crown…
Louth
The Wee County failed to register a win in Allianz League Division Two this year and were relegated but their exposure to better opposition may reap some reward come Championship. They open against Westmeath and will have plenty of belief they can win that game.
Key Man: Paddy Keenan – Their captain and talisman, he’s the key man once again for Aidan O’Rourke’s side.
Young Player: Paddy Reilly – A player that maybe needs to find a fixed position in the team but always makes a contribution wherever he plays.
World Cup Twin: USA – We’re pretty sure they’re about the same in terms of area and both are capable of a giant killing.
Sky Sports Celebrity Pundit: Gerry Adams – Louth to the core, no one knows the place better…
JOE’s Prediction: Knocked out in Round two of the Qualifiers.
Meath
On paper it looks like Meath are favourites to reach the Leinster Final as they’re on the opposite side to Dublin. A solid league campaign saw them finish third in Division Two so Mick O’Dowd has a lot to build on heading into their opener against Carlow on June 15.
Key Man: Kevin Reilly – The Meath defence showed some good resilience during the league campaign and a lot of that was down to the organisation from Reilly in the full back line. A leader.
Young Player: Bryan McMahon – The youngster has made a positive impact on the forward line, where there are places up for grabs.
World Cup Twin: Russia – Two traditional superpowers capable of either putting something something special together or utterly capitulating, nothing in between.
Sky Sports Celebrity Pundit: Pierce Brosnan – Do you expect me to talk? Yes Pierce, that’s what pundits do.
JOE’s Prediction: We can’t see them getting past Round four of the qualifiers.
Offaly
The Faithful County had an absolutely abysmal start to the year as they failed to win any of their Allianz League Division Three games and were relegated. We guess things can only improve and they will go into their opener with Longford this Sunday under no pressure whatsoever.
Key Man: Niall McNamee – He’d get into most teams in the country and the Faithful need to get the most out of him to stand any chance of having a decent Summer.
Young Player: Joe Maher – There’s talk around Offaly that he’s on the cusp of becoming a real, class player at inter-county level; he has also been impressive for his club, Ferbane.
World Cup Twin: Japan – The film ‘Garage’ was filmed in Offaly and Japan is a major car manufacturer.
Sky Sports Celebrity Pundit: Barack Obama – Pints, cousins, Moneygall etc.
JOE’s Prediction: Early exit on the cards,we’d be surprised it they got past Round one of the qualifiers.
Westmeath
It was a difficult Allianz League campaign in Division One for the midlanders as they lost all seven of their games, but Paul Bealin, who is a shrewd operator, will have learned a lot and will be hoping the experience pays off this summer. Louth await in the opening round and Bealin’s men will hope to be inspired by history a decade on since they last won Leinster.
Key Man: Denis Glennon – A stylish forward who’s impressed us any time we’ve seen him, he will shoulder the bulk of Westmeath’s scoring.
Young Player: Ray Connellan – A versatile young player that should be a link man between midfield and attack, he’s definitely one to keep an eye out for.
World Cup Twin: Chile – Both are in the shadow of their more successful neighbours – Meath and Argentina – and both always produce quality forwards like Salas, Dolan, Glennon, Alexis Sanchez etc.
Sky Sports Celebrity Pundit: Niall Horan – The One Directioner can tell us how to deal all those third woman tackles he encounters. He’s also a man for the big occasion so his advice on the mental side of things will be interesting.
JOE’s Prediction: Obviously it depends on the draw but it’s hard to see them getting past Round three of the qualifiers.
Wexford
Wexford endured a pretty rocky Allianz League campaign but they finished strongly to survive in Division Three so they’ll be hoping to bring that bit of momentum into their opener against the winners of Longford and Offaly. The loss of David Murphy to retirement is a blow.
Key Man: Ben Brosnan – He’s still exerting his influence in that forward line and on his day, he’s as good a free-taker as anyone. Needs a big summer.
Young Player: David Breen – The defence has been weakened with Murphy’s retirement and Breen is one of the players earmarked to fill the void.
World Cup Twin: Mexico – Mexico-Wexico, both have sunnier climes than most and are both known for their delicious fruit exports.
Sky Sports Celebrity Pundit: Mick Wallace – Those flamboyant shirts would be super sexy on Sky and his forthright views would be pure entertainment.
JOE’s Prediction: Hard to know but getting past Round three of the qualifiers would be a big ask.
Wicklow
Harry Murphy’s side finished third in Allianz League Division Four and welcome Laois to fortress Aughrim in their opening game. The venue has caused some shocks and given some scares down through the years so they’ll be hoping the home advantage plays a part.
Key Man: Leighton Glynn – The captain, the leader and the man who can influence a game more than anyone for Wicklow.
Young Player: Kevin Murphy – A young defender who’s been making an impact since his fine performances with Baltinglass have been rewarded with a county call-up. He could be a mainstay for many years to come.
World Cup Twin: Honduras – Undoubtedly one of the minnows of the competition, we also hear Honduras has some wonderful mountain ranges.
Sky Sports Celebrity Pundit: Daniel Day Lewis – The award winning thespian has reportedly been following Joe Brolly around for the last 12 months in preparation for the role. One of the great method actors, he’d have no problem adapting to the task at hand.
JOE’s Prediction: It shouldn’t be a very long Summer, we reckon it’ll be a first round qualifier exit for Murphy’s men.
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