Senior footballers face Cavan who are fighting for Div1 survival

Tue, 19th March 2019

With the exception of Division 3, where Louth v Westmeath was postponed last weekend due to the bad weather, all other counties have completed six rounds in the Allianz Football League, leaving one decisive round to be played this Sunday.

Derry and Leitrim have already taken the two promotion places in Division 4, while Sligo will be relegated from Division 3. Elsewhere, there will be drama all the way with final places (Division 1) and promotion and relegation issues to be settled in the top three divisions.

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 1: FOUR IN CONTENTION FOR PLACES IN THE FINAL

Sunday (2.0): Cavan v Dublin, Kingspan Breffni Park; Mayo v Monaghan, Elverys MacHale Park; Roscommon v Kerry, Dr. Hyde Park; Tyrone v Galway, Omagh.

With Dublin’s bid to reach the final for a seventh successive year having failed, attention turns to who will take the two prized places in Sunday week’s decider. It’s between Kerry (10pts), Galway and Mayo (8pts each) Tyrone (7pts each). At the other end of the table, two from Cavan (2pts), Roscommon (3pts) and Monaghan (4pts) will be relegated.

A draw for Kerry against Roscommon would be enough to ensure that the Kingdom reaches the final for the second time in three seasons. Even if Kerry lose, they will reach the final automatically unless Mayo and Galway win, in which case scoring difference would decide the running order between that trio.

Kerry are currently on +11 points, Mayo on +7 and Galway on 0. If Mayo beat Monaghan and Galway fail to beat Tyrone, James Horan’s men will book a place in the final. If Galway and Mayo finish level on points, Galway will be deemed to be ahead, having won the head-to-head contest.

Tyrone will reach the final if they beat Galway and Monaghan beat Mayo. Tyrone last reached the final in 2013; Mayo were last there in 2012 while Galway are seeking to get there for a second successive year.

Cavan are hanging on to their Division 1 status by a thread and would need to beat Dublin by a sizeable margin and other results to go their way to have any chance of survival. They need Mayo to beat Monaghan, and Roscommon to draw with Kerry to have the two relegation places settled on scoring difference.

Cavan are on 13 points, Roscommon on -20 and Monaghan on -8.

Monaghan will be safe if they beat Mayo but if they lose and Roscommon win, Malachy O’Rourke’s men will drop out of Division 1 after five seasons in the top flight.

Mayo beat Monaghan by a point in last year’s League. Galway beat Tyrone by four points last season. The last Dublin v Cavan League clash was in 2017 when Jim Gavin’s men won by seven points, Kerry beat Roscommon by six points two years ago.

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 2: MEATH PRIMED TO END LONG WAIT FOR PROMOTION

Sunday (2.0): Armagh v Cork, Athletic Grounds; Donegal v Kildare, Ballyshannon; Meath v Fermanagh, Pairc Tailteann; Tipperary v Clare, Semple Stadium.

Meath (10pts) have not been in Division 1 since 2006, but the long wait for promotion will come to an end next Sunday if they beat, or draw with Fermanagh (8pts). Donegal (8pts) and Kildare (7pts) are also in contention for promotion.

Donegal host Kildare, knowing that a win would be enough to secure promotion if Meath beat Fermanagh. If Fermanagh and Donegal both win, the top two places would be decided on scoring difference, which currently stands as follows: Meath +20 pts; Donegal +5 pts; Fermanagh +2 pts.

Two from Clare, Tipperary and Cork (all on three points) will be relegated. Cork are on -22 pts, Tipperary -9 and Clare -8. Cork are away to Armagh, who are safe on six points, while Tipperary host Clare in Semple Stadium. The sides drew in last year’s League.

Ironically another draw between them and a Cork win would see Clare and Tipperary both relegated.

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 3: DOWN POISED FOR QUICK RETURN TO DIVISION 2

Sunday (2.0): Down v Louth, Pairc Esler; Westmeath v Longford, TEG Cusack Park; Sligo v Offaly, Collooney; Laois v Carlow, O’Moore Park.

Down (10 pts) made the worst possible start to their bid to return to Division 2 at the first attempts when losing the opening game to Laois (6 pts from five games) but have since won five-in-a-row and will be guaranteed promotion if they beat Louth in Newry. The Mourne men beat Louth by six points in Division 2 last year.

The cancellation of Westmeath (7 pts from five games) v Louth due to the bad weather last weekend has created uncertainty elsewhere as they both have played a game less than their promotion-chasing rivals. Laois (8pts) will be hoping to stay in the mix by taking two points from Carlow, whom they beat three times in League and Championship last year, while Longford (7pts) are also in contention. They travel to Mullingar to take on Westmeath, whom they beat by four points in last year’s League.

Sligo, who have lost all six games, will be relegated and will be joined by Carlow (5pts) or Offaly (3pts). A draw against Laois would be enough for Carlow to survive, but if they lose and Offaly beat Sligo, John Maughan’s men will survive on the head-to-head rule as they beat Carlow in Round 4. Offaly and Sligo drew 0-8 each in last year’s League.

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 4: FIVE IN THE RACE TO FINISH THIRD

Saturday (4.0): Derry v Wexford, Owenbeg;; Leitrim v Waterford, Carrick-on-Shannon.

Sunday (1.0): Limerick v Antrim, Newcastlewest Wicklow v London, Aughrim.

Derry and Leitrim had secured the two promotion places after Round 5, but it’s close for third place, with only two points separating Waterford and Wexford (6pts each), Antrim, Limerick, Wicklow (4pts each). London are at the bottom of the table on two points as they prepare to take on Wicklow, whom they beat by nine points last year. Derry beat Wexford by 2-20 to 3-8 in Division 3 last year.

2019 ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE: RESULTS AND FIXTURES

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 1

Round 1: Monaghan 2-13 Dublin 1-13; Galway 0-13 Cavan 0-11; Kerry 0-11 Tyrone 0-7; Mayo 1-8 Roscommon 1-7.
Round 2: Dublin 1-15 Galway 0-7; Roscommon 1-12 Monaghan 0-13; Kerry 0-16 Cavan 0-13; Mayo 2-13 Tyrone 0-10.
Round 3: Kerry 1-18 Dublin 2-14; Mayo 1-13 Cavan 0-11; Roscommon 1-10 Tyrone 1-10; Galway 1-9 Monaghan 0-11.
Round 4: Dublin 1-12 Mayo 0-7; Tyrone 1-16 Monaghan 0-12; Kerry 0-14 Galway 1-10; Cavan 3-13 Roscommon 0-13.
Round 5: Tyrone 1-15 Cavan 0-9; Galway 1-11 Mayo 0-12; Dublin 2-14 Roscommon 1-12; Kerry 0-17 Monaghan 0-13.
Round 6: Galway 1-17 Roscommon 1-10; Monaghan 0-14 Cavan 1-8; Tyrone 1-14 Dublin 1-11; Mayo 1-10 Kerry 0-11.
Round 7: Mar 24: Cavan v Dublin; Mayo v Monaghan; Roscommon v Kerry; Tyrone v Galway.

Final: Mar 31

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 2

Round 1: Donegal 0-16 Clare 0-13; Fermanagh 0-8 Cork 1-5; Kildare 0-14 Armagh 1-11; Meath 0-15 Tipperary 1-8.
Round 2: Kildare 1-10 Cork 0-10; Donegal 1-13 Meath 0-14; Tipperary 2-5 Fermanagh 2-5; Armagh 1-13 Clare 2-10.
Round 3: Fermanagh 0-8 Kildare 0-6; Clare 3-13 Cork 1-10; Meath 2-13 Armagh 0-13; Tipperary 3-9 Donegal 0-13.
Round 4: Meath 2-12 Cork 1-9; Armagh 1-15 Tipperary 0-12; Fermanagh 0-13 Donegal 0-10; Kildare 1-16 Clare 0-13.
Round 5: Fermanagh 0-12 Clare 0-9; Meath 1-9 Kildare 1-8; Donegal 1-9 Armagh 0-11; Cork 1-12 Tipperary 0-12.

Round 6: Meath 1-12 Clare 1-7; Donegal 1-19 Cork 1-12; Kildare 1-11 Tipperary 2-7; Armagh 1-9 Fermanagh 0-6.
Round 7: Mar 24: Armagh v Cork; Donegal v Kildare; Meath v Fermanagh; Tipperary v Clare.
Final: Mar 31

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 3

Round 1: Carlow 1-11 Sligo 0-7; Longford 1-8 Louth 0-9; Westmeath 0-13 Offaly 0-12; Laois 2-15 Down 1-12.
Round 2: Longford 1-6 Offaly 0-9; Louth 3-8 Laois 1-9; Westmeath 1-10 Carlow 2-7; Down 1-12 Sligo 1-10.
Round 3: Down 0-10 Westmeath 0-9; Longford 1-11 Carlow 0-9; Louth 2-10 Offaly 2-8; Laois 2-18 Sligo 2-10
Round 4: Down 3-7 Longford 0-8; Westmeath 0-13 Laois 0-10; Louth 5-16 Sligo 0-16; Offaly 0-15 Carlow 1-9.
Round 5: Carlow 1-10 Louth 0-12; Down 2-12 Offaly 0-10; Laois 0-14 Longford 0-12; Westmeath 3-12 Sligo 1-10.
Round 6: Longford 2-15 Sligo 0-14; Louth v Westmeath - Postponed; Laois 2-12 Offaly 0-15; Down 0-15 Carlow 1-11.
Round 7: Mar 24: Down v Louth; Westmeath v Longford; Sligo v Offaly; Laois v Carlow.
Final: Mar 30

ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 4

Round 1: Derry 1-10 Antrim 1-9; Leitrim 3-15 Wexford 0-11; Limerick 0-11 London 0-10; Wicklow 1-7 Waterford 0-9
Round 2: Derry 0-19 London 1-9; Limerick 1-13 Waterford 0-10; Leitrim 1-16 Wicklow 1-12; Wexford 1-10 Antrim 0-9.
Round 3: Leitrim 0-14 Antrim 1-10; London 2-10 Wexford 0-8; Derry 2-12 Waterford 1-8; Wicklow 2-8 Limerick 1-6.
Round 4: Leitrim 0-12 Limerick 0-11: Antrim 1-13 London 1-8; Derry 2-8 Wicklow 0-9; Waterford 5-4 Wexford 0-12.
Round 5: Wexford 0-12 Wicklow 0-9; Waterford 1-9 Antrim 1-8; Leitrim 1-9 London 0-7; Derry 0-13 Limerick 1-5.
Round 6: Antrim 2-15 Wicklow 0-10; Waterford 2-9 London 0-7; Wexford 0-14 Limerick 1-10; Derry 2-16 Leitrim 1-12.
Round 7: Mar 24: Derry v Wexford; Leitrim v Waterford; Limerick v Antrim; Wicklow v London.

Final: Mar 30