Leitrim Ladies to host Kildare and on to road to Louth in TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship

Jonny Garrity's Leitrim Ladies have been handed an intriguing draw for this year's TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate campaign with Leinster duo Kildare and Louth drawn to face the Green & Gold.

Leitrim will host back to back Leinster champions Kildare on Sunday June 11, before travelling to face Louth just a week later on Sunday June 18. Kildare and Louth will meet in the final round on Sunday June 25. No venue has yet been fixed for the clash with Kildare with venues perhaps depending on Leitrim Men’s progress in the Tailteann Cup, with the preliminary quarter-finals scheduled for that same weekend.

The top two teams in each group of the four quarter finals, due to be held on Sunday July 9, with the bottom team in each group will battle it out to avoid relegation with two teams due to make the drop to the Junior grade for 2024.

Roscommon deny Leitrim treble as Hanley goals prove vital

ROSCOMMON 2-13 LEITRIM 1-7

Kildare won the Leinster Intermediate crown for the second year in a row when they defeated Wexford 2-12 to 1-8. Roisin Byrne, who scored ten points in the Division 3 Final as the Lilywhites beat Clare by a point, was again their leading performer as she scored 1-7 against a Wexford team who beat Leitrim by two points in last year's All-Ireland series.

Kildare, who didn't advance from the group stages last year, beat Leitrim by four points in the 2021 quarter-finals before going all the way to the final where they lost to Westmeath.

Louth were beaten convincingly by Kildare in the Leinster semi-final, 3-15 to 0-10, but they did defeat the Lilywhites earlier in the year in the league, winning a low scoring Division 3 encounter 1-5 to 0-7 and also beat Sligo, Offaly and Longford to finish fifth in the table.

Louth famously denied Leitrim promotion in the League in 2021 when they won a roller coaster of a Division 4 Final in Clones 4-9 to 1-14 and no doubt the Green & Gold will be looking for a bit of payback.

Time to get back on the horse

THE LAST POINT

Connacht champions Roscommon face Wexford & Monaghan in group 3 while Antrim, who defeated Leitrim in this year's Division 4 Final, go into group 4 as top seeds having beaten Division 2 side Tyrone in the Ulster Final. They  take on Longford and Westmeath in the group. In the final group, Clare, Tyrone, Offaly and Wicklow do battle.

It makes for an intriguing but far from intimidating draw for Leitrim who would have scores to settle with both teams after defeats over the last two years.