Preview: Weekend's provincial football championship action
Jordan Morris of Meath in action against Sam McCartan of Westmeath during the Allianz Football League Division 2 match between Westmeath and Meath at TEG Cusack Park in Mullingar, Westmeath. Photo by Tyler Miller/Sportsfile.
* The match day panels for all of this weekend's inter-county championship matches can be viewed and downloaded at the bottom of this article.
Saturday, April 18
Ulster SFC quarter-final
Derry v Antrim, Find Insurance Celtic Park, 5pm – BBC
Derry have named a strong looking team for this Ulster SFC quarter-final against Antrim that includes three changes from their last outing, a League victory over Cavan.
Eoin McEvoy makes his first start of the season, Conor McCluskey makes his first start since the win over Tyrone in February, and Conor Doherty is back after missing the Cavan game.
Antrim improved over the course of their Division Four League campaign but are still massive underdogs here.
Derry’s greater scoring power should make it a comfortable enough win by the end.
Sunday, April 19
Leinster SFC quarter-finals
Kildare v Laois, Cedral St Conleth's Park, 3.45pm
Laois got their championship campaign off to a very positive start with a nine-point win over Offaly last weekend whereas Kildare are coming into the match cold.
The Lilywhites were relegated from Division Two of the League as their young team seemed to suffer a crisis of confidence after a decent start to the campaign.
Laois have a tendency to blow hot and cold so it’s hard to know what to expect from them.
They’re capable of winning this game if they play like they did last weekend, but home advantage and the scoring power of players like Ben Loakman, Darragh Kirwan, and Brian McLoughlin could swing it for Kildare
Dublin v Wicklow, Echelon Park Aughrim, 3pm
Wicklow got their championship campaign off to a flier last weekend when defeating Division 4 League champions Carlow, but Dublin represent a big step up in quality.
Ger Brennan’s team might be in a period of transition, but they’ve still named a strong looking starting XV for this match that includes Con O’Callaghan, Paddy Smally, Sean Bugler, and Niall Scully in a potent attack.
If Wicklow get a decent supply of ball into the likes of Padraig O’Toole and Oisin McGraynor they’re capable of making life uncomfortable for a new-look Dublin defence, but a shock result doesn’t really look on the cards.
Louth v Wexford, Netwatch Cullen Park, 2.30pm
Defending champions Louth will go into this game as warm favourites but Wexford will fancy their chances of pulling off an upset.
The Slaneysiders made it consecutive promotions in the League and were very unlucky to lose to Down in the Division Three Final so they’re bringing some good form into the contest.
If it is match of fine margins then Louth’s bench could swing it for them. Players like Ryan Burns, Craig Lennon, Tommy Durnin, and Ciaran Downey are all capable of making a big impact.
Meath v Westmeath, Glenisk O'Connor Park, 2pm
Meath have named the same XV that beat Cork in the Division Two Final and on the strength of their impressive performance in that match will go into this game as warm favourites.
The Westmeath challenge shouldn’t be discounted though. They were very impressive when beating Longford by 5-25 to 1-16 in the first round and have clinical finishers in attack like Luke Loughlin, Brandon Kelly, Shane Corcoran and Ray Connellan.
Meath could have the edge in the middle third though where men like Jack Flynn, Cian McBride and Bryan Menton give them a great ball-winning platform.
If the Royals can dominate possession like they did in the League Final, then forwards like Jordan Morris, Eoghan Frayne, and Ruairí Kinsella can shoot them to victory.
Ulster SFC quarter-final
Monaghan v Cavan, St Tiernach's Park, Clones, 3pm - BBC
A Monaghan team in transition endured a torrid League campaign in Division 1 that saw them lose seven games from seven by an average of 10 points each.
They did finish on something of a relative high though by scoring 3-15 in their final match of the campaign against Donegal when they lost to the eventual champions by just five points.
Cavan didn’t have a great League campaign themselves, just about avoiding relegation to Division Three.
It’s likely to be a tight match, but Monaghan look like they have a bit more firepower with players like Mícheál Bannigan, Stephen O’Hanlon, and David Garland in attack.
