New round robin format for Connacht U17 Football Championship in 2018

With the new U17 grade replacing the Minor (U18) grade next year, the task of winning a Connacht Championship has become much harder with the news that the Connacht GAA Council have approved a new round-robin format for the U17 competition.

Leitrim U17s will open their Championship campaign with a trip to Mayo followed by a home game against Roscommon, a trip to Sligo and finally a home clash with Galway with the top two teams qualifying for the Final.

In both of last year’s Minor and U17 Championship, Leitrim were drawn in semi-finals which increased their chances of making it into the Provincial Finals and the new format will surely suit the better resourced counties.

No dates have yet been released but with the link between adult and juvenile football now severed, the fixtures can be played at a prime time during the Summer.

The full list of fixtures is as follows:

Round 1: Mayo v Leitrim; Galway v Roscommon

Round 2: Sligo v Galway; Roscommon v Mayo

Round 3: Leitrim v Roscommon; Mayo v Sligo

Round 4: Sligo v Leitrim; Galway v Mayo

Round 5: Leitrim v Galway; Roscommon v Sligo