Allen Gaels the favourites but Annaduff can cause upset

They've long carried the title of favourites for this year's Smith Monumentals Intermediate Championship title but Allen Gaels face their stiffest test next Saturday when they take on Annaduff in the semi-finals in Avant Money Pairc Sean Mac Diarmada (4.30 throw-in).

Relegated from the Senior ranks last year, it hasn't been plain sailing for the Drumshanbo men who had a mid season change of manager and a dramatic injury time loss in the second round to Kiltubrid to go with an up and down season in Division 2 but there is no doubting that the Gaels have the talent to mount a serious challenge for the title.

Time to split the split season

THE LAST POINT

The same can quite easily be said for Annaduff - life in Division 1 was very tough for a new-look and very young team but they've gradually rediscovered their form in the championship, suffering one loss as they claimed top spot in the group.

Interestingly, that loss came at the hands of Allen Gaels in round three but the bald facts of the 1-12 to 0-7 scoreline hides much of the drama with Annaduff level with the home team in Shane McGettigan Park until an injury to Hugh Moylan and a black card for Adam O'Hagan transformed this contest.

And as they showed against Kiltubrid and quite a few other teams this year, once they get a scent of blood, there are few teams with the capability of racking up big scores in a short space of time with the attacking instincts of Ciaran Walsh, Caleb Duffy, Colin Moran and Ciaran McMorrow particularly effective.

Defensively, the Gaels have a nice mix of experience and youth with Alan Wynne, Martin Raftery and Mark Gunning giving them a firm bedrock on which to build with Ronan Moran a solid last line of defence.

 But it is at midfield where Allen Gaels have two gems in Radek Oberwan and Jake Tobin - both are young but that is no handicap as both are serious ballers, capable of winning the dirty ball and using it effectively.

For Annaduff, there will be a temptation to believe that avoiding injury and discipline issues would have given them the edge over the Gaels in the group stages but that could lead to overconfidence and that could be dangerous against a side as well motivated as the Drumshanbo men.

Quarter-Finalists to face each other in Smith Monumentals IFC Semi-Finals as Annaduff face Allen Gaels

Sean McNabola continues to be their standard bearer in attack, now at the veteran stage on a team transformed since they contested the delayed 2020 Intermediate Final and on his day, McNabola can punish any team from a variety of angles so the Gaels will need to watch their discipline.

Kenny Cox, Eoin and Dean Gill, Sean Duignan and Dillon Keane are all quality players while Daniel Bosquette adds huge pace and intelligence on the ball in the middle of the park.

Annaduff topped the group when they handed a Mohill team denuded of players who featured in the knockout stages of the senior championship a ferocious 4-25 to 0-5 beating in the final group game, their scoring difference seeing them leap over both Allen Gaels and Aughnasheelin into top place.

Interestingly, given that the teams who qualified automatically for the semi finals in the senior grade both exited the competition last Saturday, neither Allen Gaels or Annaduff will have an advantage over the other, both having gone three weeks since their last outing.

Will that make them a little lethargic or leave them as fresh as a daisy when the ball is thrown in on Sunday? Hard to know but neither will be at a disadvantage when it comes to match sharpness and the long gap may actually suit whoever wins when it comes to the final.

Scoring wise, the stats are skewed by Annaduff's victory over Mohill's second string. Take that out of the equation and they averaged 14 points a game while conceding 13 points a game but add in the Mohill result and those figures become 19.75 points scored per game and 11 points a game conceded.

For Allen Gaels, the numbers do tell us that they score goals with nine. Kiltubrid scored as many but played one game more with the Drumshanbo men averaging 17.5 points a game while conceding just 12.25 points a game.

Annaduff leap into top spot as Allen Gaels hand Aughnasheelin first defeat

Ballinaglera & Drumreilly consigned to relegation series after losses to Kiltubrid & Drumkeerin

If that leaves you confused, I'm not surprised because, at the end of the day, there doesn't seem to be much between the teams - Allen Gaels have an edge in attacking output and defensive meanness but again, a different result in the Annaduff Allen Gaels game would change those stats.

My gut feeling is that Allen Gaels carry the greater scoring threat and if they get the right sort of ball into Caleb Duffy often enough, the Gaels can do a lot of damage. I'd never write off Annaduff, they'll love being underdogs and they will battle as if their lives depend on it but I'm going to give the dreaded vote of confidence to Allen Gaels!