A preview of the weekend's matches
Today
DIVISION ONE
It’s strange to remember that just a year ago when the counties finally met after two postponements, Tipperary desperately needed the win both to maintain the rivalry after the previous September’s narrow All-Ireland defeat, but also because they had got walloped by Dublin in the league in the meantime.
Now Tipp are champions and Kilkenny, you sense, would like to set a tone for 2011. Kilkenny can be expected to treat the competition with a bit more urgency this season even if last year’s defeats came with understrength teams in well -contested matches.
New Tipperary manager Declan Ryan has a few injury absentees but names half of the All-Ireland team including a handful of the team that won the county’s last big match here, last September’s All-Ireland under-21 final. Fitzgibbon sharpshooter Timmy Hammersley gets a run, having played a sequence of league matches in 2010 but only a few minutes of championship hurling.
Kilkenny manager Brian Cody is also restricted, primarily with the long-term injury to Henry Shefflin but also with the O’Loughlin Gaels pair of Martin Comerford and Brian Hogan club tied. The opportunity to try some new faces led to some promising displays in the Walsh Cup and you’d imagine the developing edge between the counties will drive the dispossessed that bit harder.
NFL DIVISION FOUR
Understrength Roscommon did well last week and were even disappointed with the draw against Longford. This won’t be as taxing.
Disappointment for Clare last week in going down narrowly to Leitrim after getting two red cards.
This will be therapeutic.
ALL-IRELAND CLUB FINALS
JFC: St Mary’s (Kerry) v Swanlinbar (Cavan), Croke Park, 5.30pm – Two St Mary’s meet, the Cavan champions having survived the controversy of being awarded the Ulster final (after Corduff fielded an ineligible player) and beaten Meath’s Ballinabrackey in the semi-final.
The Cahirciveen club will however be favourites to take this title to Kerry for the fifth time in 10 years.
IFC: St James (Galway) v Lisnaskea Emmetts (Fermanagh), Croke Park, 7.15pm – Having held off Kerry’s Gneeveguilla after extra time despite being a man short and with their county players Paul Conroy and Eoin Concannon in form the Galway city club are entitled to be favourites for this against Lisnaskea, who had a commanding win over Ballymore Eustace in the semi-finals.
Tomorrow
NHL DIVISION ONE
The statistics of John McIntyre’s injury deprivation are impressive, but, as he acknowledged, they give the opportunity to take a look at some newcomers.
Johnny Coen, the forceful young Loughrea forward, gets a run at corner forward and John Lee moves to the full back position where he was so important to NUI Galway’s Fitzgibbon win last year.
Colm Bonnar has a number of selection difficulties for the county’s first match on their return to Division One, but at least the Oulart players are again available.
More likely a home win.
Best news this week for Offaly was that David Kenny, whose injury caused the abandonment of last week’s Walsh Shield final, had escaped serious injury.
Joe Dooley could be forgiven for looking on these matches as bonus territory pending the more obvious relegation dog-fights. Cork are in conspicuous transition and debut a new centre back, Mark Ellis, but there’s not much experimental about the forwards with Tom Kenny’s move to wing forward the biggest innovation.
Nonetheless, you’d expect Denis Walsh’s side to pocket the points.
Last season opened with this fixture and, after travelling with high hopes, Dublin got trounced.
Form has been good in the pre- season Walsh Cup and despite the unavailability of some key players, they have reached the final against Kilkenny and welcome back Conal Keaney from the footballers.
Waterford have been floating through January as usual and last week won the Munster Cup. David Fitzgerald has a good mix of established and younger players but the full-back line is inexperienced. Anthony Daly received the good news yesterday that the Leinster Council had down-graded John McCaffrey’s red card in the Walsh Cup to a yellow, making him available.
This could be close enough, but the home side are favoured.
DIVISION TWO
Brendan Fennelly’s Laois battled away against Kilkenny last week and will expect to make the required start to this season’s campaign against a Westmeath side which has developed ‘dual’ issues.
If Carlow are to maintain their standing in the upper half of the division they’ll need to win this and, despite missing a couple of players, the form showed last week against Offaly should ensure they do against a Down side hit by injury.
A chance for Kerry to pick up opening-day points, but the visitors look too strong and will have a Clare man, Seán Hawes of Cratloe, who is studying in Jordanstown, making his debut in goal.
Dónal O’Grady kept Limerick out of the Munster Cup in order to get them up to speed in training.
Clare are missing big players such as the travelling Brian O’Connell and captain Pat Vaughan who’s injured, but they’ll still be expected to draw first blood in a rivalry that’s expected to go all the way to the divisional final.
NFL DIVISION FOUR
Leitrim’s win over Clare was a triumph over adversity given
the emigration difficulties facing the county and Wicklow should step up on last week and take the points.
Fermanagh make their entrance for the season against a Carlow side who shared the points with Wicklow on opening day.
This will be expected to go to the team with home advantage.
ALL-IRELAND CLUB FINALS
JHC: Meelin (Cork) v John Lockes (Kilkenny), Croke Park, 2pm – With three All-Irelands each Cork and Kilkenny clubs dominate the grade and John Lockes are favourites to give Kilkenny the edge against the Duhallow village.
IHC: Ballymartle (Cork) v Dicksboro (Kilkenny), Croke Park, 3.45pm – Dicksboro attempt to win a second All-Ireland, having claimed one previously in 2006, and they are fancied to make it a Kilkenny double against the Riverstick club with a big Munster final win under their belt as well as a hard-fought semi-final against Pádraig Pearses from Galway.
London v Roscommon
Ruislip, 2.30pm
Galway v Wexford
Pearse Stadium, 2.30pm
Live on TG4
Division Two
There isn’t a huge body of evidence in relation to this division, but so far the team that lost the divisional final the previous season has won it the next. Which puts Clare in pole position for promotion this year.
Complicating the situation is the presence of a far stronger Limerick team than the one that got relegated in the first place.
Donal O’Grady has been working away with Limerick but will take a while to mould a team.
Antrim, on championship form, and Laois, on Walsh Cup form, suggest that they could trouble the loser of tomorrow’s Clare-Limerick showdown, who won’t be able to afford to lose again.
Carlow have finished fourth for the past two seasons and impressed at times in last week’s Walsh Shield final against Offaly but Eddie Coady’s team are still long shots to break into the top two. Westmeath and Down are expected to be more concerned by matters at the other end of the table.
Tomorrow – Westmeath v Laois, Down v Carlow, Kerry v Antrim, Clare v Limerick. Feb 19th – Limerick v Westmeath. Feb 20th – Laois v Carlow, Antrim v Clare, Kerry v Down. Mar 6th – Laois v Antrim, Westmeath v Clare, Down v Limerick, Carlow v Kerry. Mar 12th – Kerry v Westmeath. Mar 13th – Antrim v Carlow, Clare v Down, Limerick v Laois. Mar 26th – Clare v Kerry. Mar 27th – Westmeath v Antrim, Down v Laois, Carlow v Limerick. Apr 2nd – Laois v Clare, Carlow v Westmeath. Apr 3rd – Down v Antrim, Limerick v Kerry. Apr 17th – Westmeath v Down, Antrim v Limerick, Kerry v Laois, Clare v Carlow.
Betting to win Division Two
5/6 Clare, 6/5 Limerick, 11/1 Antrim, 14/1 Laois, 50/1 Carlow, 80/1 Down, 80/1 Westmeath, 100/1 Kerry.
Kerry v Antrim
Tralee, 12.30pm
Westmeath v Laois
Mullingar, 2.30pm
Cork v Offaly
Páirc Uí Chaoimh, 2.30pm
Clare v Kilkenny
Milltown, 2.30pm
Leitrim v Wicklow
Carrick-on-Shannon, 2.30pm
Carlow v Fermanagh
Dr Cullen Park, 2.30pm
Allianz Hurling League
Down v Carlow
Portaferry, 1.30pm
Division One
The hurling league has prefigured the outcome of five of the last 10 All-Ireland championships but there is evidence to suggest that this statistic is more a reflection of Kilkenny’s priorities any given spring than a precise indicator.
It’s 10 years since Tipperary did the double and the four other instances since have all been won by Brian Cody’s teams.
On the occasions that Galway have broken through in spring, their subsequent championships have not been memorable and if 2007 is seen as Waterford’s best chance to have won the All-Ireland the fact remains that they failed to add that year’s Liam MacCarthy to a first league title in 44 years. On the only three occasions in the past 10 years that Kilkenny failed to win the All-Ireland they bounced back to claim the following spring’s league title.
Arguably of greater importance is the battle at the other end of the table where Dublin, Wexford and Offaly will try to retain their places.
Today – Tipp v Kilkenny. Tomorrow: Cork v Offaly, Waterford v Dublin, Galway v Wexford. Feb 19th – Dublin v Tipp. Feb 20th – Offaly v Galway, Kilkenny v Cork, Wexford v Waterford. Mar 5th – Tipp v Waterford. Mar 6th – Cork v Galway, Offaly v Dublin, Kilkenny v Wexford. Mar 13th – Galway v Kilkenny, Tipp v Offaly, Waterford v Cork, Wexford v Dublin. Mar 27th – Cork v Tipp, Dublin v Galway, Offaly v Wexford, Kilkenny v Waterford. Apr 3rd – Galway v Tipp, Offaly v Waterford, Wexford v Cork, Dublin v Kilkenny. Apr 17th – Cork v Dublin, Tipp v Wexford, Waterford v Galway, Kilkenny v Offaly.
Betting to win Division One
11/8 Kilkenny, 7/4 Tipperary, 4/1 Galway, 10/1 Cork, 12/1 Waterford, 50/1 Offaly, 50/1 Dublin, 100/1 Wexford.
Clare v Limerick
Cusack Park, 2.30pm
Waterford v Dublin
Walsh Park, 2.30pm
Deferred on TG4
Tipperary v Kilkenny
Semple Stadium, 7.30pm
Live on Setanta Ireland
