WEEKEND PREVIEWS: 10 games across three grades in TG4 All-Ireland Championships; All-Ireland U14 Finals in store

There are ten games down for decision this weekend across the three grades of the TG4 All-Ireland Championships – as the senior series gets underway.

All four of the weekend’s TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship games will be available live via TG4 linear TV and the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel.

Armagh v Meath on Saturday at 2pm will be live on the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel and Sunday’s Laois v Cork game (3pm) will also be available on the same platform.
Donegal v Kerry (1.05pm) and Dublin v Mayo (2.55pm) are both live on TG4 on Sunday.
The LGFA has also confirmed live coverage of the Group 1 Intermediate Championship fixture between Down and Westmeath (2pm) on Sunday from Páirc Esler in Newry – and that game will be available to view on the Association’s Facebook Page and YouTube channel.
There are three other fixtures on Sunday in the Intermediate championship, with two games down for decision at Junior level.
The 2024 All-Ireland U14 champions will also be crowned on Saturday, with the Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze titles up for grabs.

Group 1 – Armagh v Meath; BOX-IT Athletic Grounds – Live on Spórt TG4 YouTube

Armagh’s gripping Ulster Senior Final victory over Donegal came at a real cost – as the Orchard County lost star forward Aimee Mackin to a season-ending knee ligament injury.

How manager Greg McGonigle copes without Mackin will be interesting to note – and her absence is a severe dent to the county’s TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship hopes.

The reigning Lidl NFL Division 1 champions will still be extremely competitive however, but they’re also without Louise Kenny, who also went off injured in the provincial final win.

McGonigle brings in Sarah Quigley and Niamh Reel to replace Kenny and Mackin, as he makes two changes in personnel to his starting line-up.

Visitors Meath, All-Ireland Senior champions in 2021 and 2022, suffered a heavy defeat to Dublin in the Leinster Final but will attack the All-Ireland series with relish.

There’s one change to the team that lined out at Croke Park, with Meadhbh Byrne coming in up front for Ella Moyles.

Armagh: A Carr; G Ferguson, C McCambridge (capt.), R Mulligan; C Towe, L McConville, D Coleman; N Coleman, C O’Hanlon; E Druse, A McCoy, S Quigley; N Reel, N Henderson, K Mallon.

Meath: M McGuirk (capt.); C Lawlor, M.K. Lynch, N Troy; N Gallogly, L Young, K Newe; M O’Shaughnessy, A Cleary; M Thynne, S Melia, C Smyth; M Byrne, M Farrelly, E Duggan.

Galway v Cavan; Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA, Co. Westmeath, 3.30pm (double-header with Bronze Final)

Galway were Platinum finalists in 2019 and meet Cavan, who were A championship winners most recently in 2018.
Galway and Cavan got the better of Kildare and Tyrone in their respective semi-finals.

Galway: A Mitchell; A Hartigan, C O’Neill (capt.), A Glynn; R Conroy, A Hughes, A Kelly; N Ní Ghionnáin, K Brogan; L Murray, K Donnelly Meehan, R Maguire; O Dunne, C Flynn, N Garvey.

Cavan: K Lavelle; E Cusack, D McSeain, A Maguire; A McHugo, E O’Sullivan (capt.), L Crossan; A Rogers, S Brennan; E O’Reilly, D Brady, E McPhillips; E Galligan, C Kelly, G Sherlock.

Armagh v Derry; BOX-IT Athletic Grounds, Armagh, 4pm

Derry are the reigning All-Ireland U14 Gold champions, and looking to retain their crown.
They come up against Ulster rivals Armagh, who were B runners-up in 2017.
Armagh and Derry had excellent semi-final wins, getting the better of Cork and Mayo.

Armagh: C Havern; T Crangle, A McCague, M Creaney; C Brennan, O Reynolds, N McKenna; B Magee, M McGurgan; A McConville, K Taylor, G Marsden; C O’Hanlon, E Toale, A McMahon (capt.).

Derry: K Pachuta; K Birt (capt.), M Cleary, A McNally; E McVey, C Conway, F Kerr; C Moore, E Forbes; F Callaghan, S Quinn, G Doherty; A Musgrave, C Bennett, R Gribbin.

Offaly v Donegal; Carrigallen GFC, Co. Leitrim

Offaly were Bronze Final runners-up in 2022 and they meet Donegal, who are appearing in a first All-Ireland U14 Final since the 2015 B Final.
Both teams will approach this game with plenty of confidence, following semi-final victories over Clare and Down respectively.

Offaly: C Dunne; P Mooney, S Fox, F Delaney; C Rigney, A Smullen, D Heavin; S Smullen, S Kellaghan; S Delaney, S Farrelly (capt.), A Kellaghan; A Ryan, A Mulhare, J McKeon.

Donegal: A Meehan; Z Carr, O McLaughlin, M Friel; I McHugh (capt.), A Gallagher, N McGlinchy; E Brennan, E Molloy; D Molloy, R Wallace, S Doohan; M Barr, M Gallagher, F Gillespie.

Limerick v Antrim; Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA, Co. Westmeath, 1.30pm (double-header with Platinum Final) 

Limerick and Antrim are gearing up for their Bronze Final on the back of impressive semi-final victories over Westmeath and Monaghan.
Limerick were C winners in 2014 and 2015, and silver champions in 2019.
Antrim are hoping to break new ground by getting their hands on national U14 silverware for the first time.

Limerick: K Sherin; O O’Connor, T Doyle, A Williams; S Finnerty, C Carey (capt.), A O’Sullivan; C Mulcahy, A Donnelly; E O’Neill, C Murphy, E Waters; E Madigan, E Sommers, S Neville.

Antrim: T Kalu; R Brady, E McLaughlin (capt.), S McKinstry; K McAllister, C Graffin, C McKee; A Stanton, C McKeever; M O’Kane, A Crossley, N Ni Mhuirrigh; A Le Mahieu, S Skelly, E Lynn.

Group 2 – Donegal v Kerry; MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey, 1.05pm – Live on TG4

Donegal gave a fine account of themselves in the Ulster Final against Armagh, narrowly losing out after extra-time.

Now, they face high-class opposition once again in the form of Kerry, the beaten 2022 and 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Senior champions and recently crowned Munster queens.

Donegal have made one switch to the team that started against Armagh for this All-Ireland championship opener, with Tara White coming in for Jenny McGettigan.

Having landed the Munster A title for the first time since 2017 with victory over Cork, the Kerry team to begin their All-Ireland group campaign shows three changes in personnel.

There are starts for goalkeeper Ciara Butler, defender Aoife Dillane and ace forward Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh, who made a big impact off the bench in the come from behind victory over Cork, when the Kingdom produced a big second half display.

Goalkeeper Mary Ellen Bolger, Eilís O’Connor and Katie Brosnan drop to the bench.

Donegal: C Friel; S McLaughlin, A Temple Asokuh, E McGinley; K Dowds, N Boyle, T Hegarty; R Rodgers, T White; C McKeon, N McLaughlin (capt.), A Boyle Carr; S White, K Herron, K Long.

Kerry: C Butler; E Lynch, K Cronin, C Murphy; A O’Connell, D Kearney, A Dillane; M O’Connell, L Scanlon; N Carmody (capt.), L Ní Mhuircheartaigh, A Galvin; N Ní Chonchúir, E Dineen, D O’Leary.

Group 3 – Laois v Cork; Laois Hire O’Moore Park, 3pm – Live on Spórt TG4 YouTube

Cork suffered relegation from Division 1 of the Lidl NFL but bounced back to perform well in Munster.

The Leesiders reached the provincial final and were motoring well in the first half, before Kerry came on strong in Mallow.

Cork boss Shane Ronayne has opted for three changes in personnel for the trip to Portlaoise, as Shauna Kelly, Sadbh McGoldrick and Lydia McDonagh come in for Dara Kiniry, Sarah Leahy and Lydia McDonagh.

It’s been a tough season to date for Laois, who were relegated from Division 2 before losing all three group games in the Leinster senior championship.

The O’Moore County will hope to stay afloat in the elite championship grade but it won’t be easy for them in the group stages as this pool also contains Galway.

The Laois team that lost out to Kildare shows five changes – with captain Clodagh Dunne, Kate Jacob, Andrea Moran, Orla Hennessy and Aishling Fitzpatrick all handed starts.

Isabel Finlay, Aerin Ryle, Ciara Malone, Roisin Allen and Katie Donoghue drop out of the starting line-up.

Laois: E Barry; S Farrelly, C Dunne (capt.), G Lalor; A Moore, M Cotter, A Gorman; K Jacob, A Moran; O Hennessy, A Fitzpatrick, L Kearney; M Nerney, E Lacey, G Moran.

Cork: S Murphy; M Duggan, S Kelly, A Ryan; S McGoldrick, A Healy, D Kiely; M O’Callaghan (capt.), A O’Mahony; E Cleary, L O’Mahony, A McDonagh; S Cronin, K Quirke, R Leahy.

Group 4 – Dublin v Mayo; Parnell Park, 2.50pm – Live on TG4

Dublin are the reigning champions and with huge strength in depth, they’ll start as favourites to land the Brendan Martin Cup once again.

The Sky Blues issued a statement of intent with an impressive Leinster Final victory over Meath and as they prepare for the start of the All-Ireland series, on home soil at Parnell Park, manager Mick Bohan has made two changes to his starting line-up, with Aoife Kane and Grace Kós coming in for Jessica Tobin and Olwen Carey.

Mayo preserved Division 1 status again but lost out to Galway in the Connacht Final, relinquishing the provincial crown they won last year.

The green and red are unchanged from the Galway game as they look forward to a group campaign that also features Kildare.

Dublin: A Shiels; A Kane, L Caffrey, N Donlon; S Goldrick, M Byrne, L Magee; J Dunne, G Kós; C O’Connor, C Rowe (capt.), O Nolan; N Hetherton, H Tyrrell, K Sullivan.

Mayo: L Brennan; S Lally (capt.), N O’Malley, K Sullivan; É Ronayne, C Durkan, D Caldwell; A Geraghty, E Murray; F McLaughlin, C Needham, S Cafferky; A Staunton, M Cannon, L Cafferky.

Group 1 – Down v Westmeath, Páirc Esler, Newry – Live on LGFA Facebook and YouTube

Having beaten Cavan last weekend, Ulster champions Down will qualify for the quarter-finals if they avoid defeat here.

But this is a tricky assignment from the hosts, up against a Westmeath side stung by defeat to Wexford in the Leinster Final.

Westmeath will still fancy their chances of making progress in the All-Ireland series and have the talent to make a big impact.

Down: M Deery; A Greene, C Byrne, E Sands; C Mulvenna, N McKibbin, O Duffy; M Doherty (capt.), A Laverty; N Scullion, N King, L Duffy; N McClory, S Dougherty, V McCormack.

Westmeath: L McCormack (capt.); L McCartan, K Boyce-Jordan, L Power; C Kelly, F Coyle, R Dillon; C Kilmurray, T Dillon; A Ruane, L Slevin, A Jones; M Monaghan, S Dillon, K Hegarty.

Group 2 – Clare v Offaly; Cusack Park, Ennis, 1pm

Clare got their 2024 championship campaign off to a winning start last Sunday.

The 2023 runners-up put six goals past Monaghan in Clones, with Fidelma Marrinan bagging four of them.

Marrinan claimed the ZuCar Golden boot award as top scorer in the 2023 TG4 All-Ireland series and she’s out in front again after the opening weekend of 2024 games.

This is a first outing of the All-Ireland series for Offaly, who missed out on a Leinster Final slot.

The Faithful County did show encouraging form in the provincial series, however, beating Wicklow and drawing against Westmeath.

Clare: A Lenihan; A Keane, S Ní Chonaill, G Harvey; R Considine, J Doohan, L Griffin; L Ryan, S Considine; C McCarthy, C Harvey (capt.), T Collins; A Sexton, F Marrinan, M Downes.

Offaly: C Sheridan; A Grehan, M Mann, N Buckley; N Farrelly, E Maher, R Ennis; E McEvoy (capt.), M Rouse; K Farrelly, C Lynam, A Gavin Mangan; M Byrne, E Hand, R Cockram.

Group 3 – Roscommon v Antrim; Padraig Pearses, Woodmount, 1pm

Roscommon are in must win territory after losing to Wexford by three points last weekend.

Antrim reached the semi-finals of the All-Ireland Intermediate championship last year but it’s been a tough season for the Saffrons.

They were relegated back to Division 4 of the Lidl NFL and lost heavily against Down in the Ulster semi-final.

Roscommon: H Cummins; A McGrath, E Irwin, S Fleming; R Fitzmaurice, S Wynne, J McDermott; C Cregg, L O’Rourke; L Fleming, K Nolan, E Thompson; A Hanly, A O’Connor, N Feeney.

Antrim: S Murphy; A Kelly, E Ferran, G McGroarty; G Shannon, C Brown (capt.), H Donaghy; A Mulholland, L Dahunsi; A Montague, C Taggart, C Lohan; B Ni Cathail, A Taggart, E Rogers-Duffy.

Group 4 – Tyrone v Wicklow, O’Neill Park, Dungannon

Tyrone came out on the wrong side of a high-scoring opener against Leitrim, scoring five goals but losing by a point.

Wicklow had the ‘bye’ weekend but now face tough opposition in the form of the Red Hands, who will be eager to get back to winning ways.

Wicklow lost all three of their games in the Leinster Championship but will hope for better fortunes in the All-Ireland campaign.

Tyrone: A Coyle; J Lyons, J Barrett, E Quinn; M Mallon, M Corrigan, C Daly; A Grimes, A McHugh (capt.); E.J. Gervin, A Horisk, A McNamee; M Canavan, Z Loughran, S Gormley.  

Wicklow: E Griffin; M Corr, L Dunne, S Goetlen; N Caffrey, C Murphy, E Parke; A Gorman, S.J. Winders; S Evans, A Cullen, A Harmon; E O’Brien, N Cullen, N O’Brien.

Carlow v London; Whitehall Colmcille, Collins Avenue, Dublin, 12pm

Carlow, the Lidl NFL Division 4 winners, lost their Leinster Final against Louth but bounced back with an impressive win against Sligo last weekend.

All-Ireland semi-finalists in 2021, 2022 and 2023, the Barrowsiders can make a big step towards the last four again if they beat London, who lost out to Derry in Round 1.

The Exiles make the trip to Dublin to take on Carlow, having lost out by nine points on their visit to Derry last Sunday.

Carlow: N Hanley; A Carroll, A Roche, S McCullagh; R Bermingham (capt.), N Murphy, N Forde; E Hayden, R Bailey; B Nolan, R Sawyer, S Doyle; E Molloy, E Coogan, C Ní Shé.

London: S Farrell; A Spain, A Ryan, M Jordan; C Flanagan, L Harrold, A Sexton; A Alcorn (capt.), M Adegbamiye; L Sheehy, A O’Neill, C McMenamin; E Clarke, A McLoughlin, D Doherty.

Fermanagh v Derry; Donagh – POSTPONED

Fermanagh are a team to watch in the All-Ireland series and they meet Derry in a repeat of the Ulster Final.

On that occasion, Fermanagh bagged 6-14 in a comfortable win but Derry will approach this rematch with confidence after scoring a win over London last Sunday.

Derry will have to find some way to cope with Fermanagh’s potent attack, with the prolific Eimear Smyth a real focal point for the Erne County.

Fermanagh: M Maguire; C Clarke, C Murphy, E Keenan; S McQuade (capt.), C Murphy, L Maguire; B Bannon, C-C Bogue; D Maguire, J Doonan, A McCabe; B Bogue, E Smyth, B Smyth.

Derry: E Conway; H Mullan, B Donnelly, J Corr (capt.); S Hargan, C McGurk, M Devine; C O’Kane, O McGeough; Erin Doherty, D McKeever, A Martin; Emma Doherty, C Donnelly, L McGonagle.