GAA Fox Monumentals Intermediate Championship

Ranking the contenders - Fox Monumentals Intermediate Championship

Reporter:

John Connolly

6 Sept 2017

8. MOHILL
The only second string team in the Intermediate competition, Mohill scared the life out of a lot of teams in Group and beat Kiltubrid and drew with Cloone. And they are the beneficiaries of a boat-load of young talent emerging from recent Mohill Minor teams that give the club a huge boost not only in this competition but the Senior grade as well. PROS: Mohill have nothing to lose - nobody expects them to overcome Aughnasheelin but if the young Mohill men, and the likes of Tadhg Mulligan, the Harkins brothers, David Mitchell and a few others, run at Aughnasheelin, they will cause the sort of problems that no team likes. CONS: Mohill probably lack the physical power that Aughnasheelin and the other teams in the Intermediate quarter-finals all seem to possess while the focus must surely be on the club’s senior team. They will put up a battle but they are coming up against a higher standard from now on.
7. BALLINAGLERA
I have to say that I like watching Ballinaglera in the championship as you know what you will always get - a full-blooded, fully committed effort from everyone as they struggle against small resources and still manage to compete. They’ve come through the hard way and that will stand to them. PROS: Ballinaglera never get anything easy and if they can make their clash with Carrigallen a physical battle, there is no better team than exploiting a team’s weakness. Physically powerful, Ballinaglera have several potential match winners in Seamus McMorrow, Barry McGuire and Fergal Wynne. CONS: The one knock against Ballinaglera is that they have always struggled to transform outfield play into scores on the board. The day they do that, watch out but their shooting has often let them down while they have, in recent years, unfortunately had a tendency to freeze up a little bit on the big day. Solve those two problems and stopping Ballinaglera will be very, very hard.
6. LEITRIM GAELS
Another team I expected big things from this year but a disjointed campaign sees them come into the quarter-finals under somewhat of a cloud. But it was the same last year and they were unlucky not to beat Drumkeerin after extra-time in a replay - the talent is certainly there. PROS: A lot of new young talent is starting for the Gaels this year with Shaun Chandler, Brian McElgunn, Paddy Flynn, Narada Patrasco and a few others adding to the strength of the Flynn and Moreton brothers. CONS: Maybe, just maybe, the young players are struggling a little with the step-up to adult championship action. They are definitely talented but the Gaels looked terribly disjointed against Kiltubrid, albeit in a match they didn’t need to win. Fenagh are a step up again and have the forwards to trouble the Gaels.
5. DRUMKEERIN
To be honest, I had Drumkeerin probably as favourite for this title at the start of the year so impressed I was by their Final display against Ballinamore last year. Unfortunately for them, they have been very up and down in the campaign so far so they have a lot of work to do to get back to where they were last year. PROS: The pressure is off and they will look on Cloone as a team they can overcome. And talent doesn’t disappear overnight so if Drumkeerin can rediscover the form they showed last year, they could yet have a big say in this competition. CONS: Losing to Ballinaglera’s injury time goal probably sums up Drumkeerin’s year so far as they have mixed some impressive passages of play with costly errors and slips in concentration. And lifting yourself is harder said than done, particularly against a strong Cloone side.
4. CARRIGALLEN
After a couple of horrible years for the 2009 Senior Championship finalists, Carrigallen are starting to show signs of turning the corner. Some results have been mixed but an influx of new players and the return of Eoin Ward has restored an impetus that was lost. PROS: No pressure - Carrigallen are going to be a match for a lot of teams with their younger players beginning to show what we all suspected they are capable of. The return of Eoin Ward gives them a real threat in attack and the fact that they are outsiders will help their cause. CONS: Defensively, Carrigallen have been caught out once or twice and that has to be a cause for concern while confidence in their own ability sometimes seems to be a problem, at least to this observer, at times during games.
3. CLOONE
Despite a loss and a draw in their last two games, Cloone end up in third place due to the fact that they had already qualified and in Darren Carberry, they have one of the most potent goal-poachers in the Leitrim club game. Well balanced and focused, Cloone know what it takes to win an Intermediate title. PROS: As long as you have a poacher like Darren Carberry, Cloone have a great chance as he somehow seems to find two goals a game. This may increase the pressure on him but he has a cutting edge that leads to goals and frees. With Gavin Reynolds leading a tight marking defence, a mobile midfield and strong attack, don’t underestimate Cloone. CONS: Same as Fenagh, if Cloone’s chief scorer Carberry is held, where do the scores come from? And did they take a risk by dropping their intensity for the last two games of the group stages, you cannot turn a switch on and off during the championship.
2. FENAGH ST. CAILLIN'S
The out and out favourite for so long in this grade, they lost top spot to their Aughnasheelin neighbours but only just. In fact, the loss may just be the best thing to happen to them as it wipes away any notion of complacency and is a timely reminder that the stakes are rising high from now on. PROS: Fenagh’s forwards are very impressive - Alan Doonan and Riordan O’Rourke are match winners and Donal Wrynn can be a massive leader anywhere on the field but the shining light is county star Ryan O’Rourke who really does make their attack tick. CONS: If Ryan O’Rourke is held, and Aughnasheelin managed to subdue him last weekend, Fenagh are vulnerable. He is so central to their attacking plan and brings his team-mates into the play. Fenagh will need him at his best as there would be slight worries about their defence.
1. AUGHNASHEELIN
A statement win over Fenagh St. Caillin’s moves Aughnasheelin into top spot as they remain the only unbeaten side in the competition, their only dropped points came against Ballinaglera. A nice mix of experience and youth, Aughnasheelin finally seem to have developed their firepower in attack. PROS: Momentum and a lovely blend of youth and experience make Aughnasheelin a dangerous opponent. The McWeeneys and Wayne Gilgunn have seen it all and won this title in the past but the emergence of Conor Cullen, Fintan Fitzpatrick, Philip Dolan and Niall Mulvanerty has greatly added to their options. CONS: A few low scores have suggested that Aughnasheelin can struggle against obdurate opposition while there is a high reliance on the impressive Conor Cullen. He carried an injury into the early stages of the competition and they struggled without him - a key player.

It is Quarter-Final time and we are getting down to do or die time in the Fox Monumentals Intermediate Championship.

We decided to take a look at each of the eight teams who have qualified for the Senior Quarter-Finals and rank them ahead of their matches this weekend.

Of course, these rankings may look pretty stupid by the end of the weekend but here we go anyway, starting from eight to one!

Simply click on each picture to find out where we rank the teams.