Ulster Intermediate Ladies' Football Championship semi-final:
Down v Fermanagh (Saturday, Galbally, 2pm)
DOWN and Fermanagh will battle it out on Saturday for a place in the Ulster Intermediate Championship final against Tyrone on July 3.
It is the Mourne county’s first taste of championship action this year while, for Fermanagh, it is their second chance after losing out to Tyrone in the first semi-final last month. The sides have already met this year in the league, when they battled it out for survival in Division Three. Down won that game by 4-11 to 0-7 to ensure they stayed in the third-tier, while Fermanagh dropped down to the fourth division for 2017.
It is easy to forget Fermanagh are, in fact, the defending champions, having beaten Antrim in the final last year and, unfortunately, they are a long way off the side they were 12 months ago. They have not won a single game all year and managers Emmett Curry and Michael Mooney only stepped into the hot seat just before the end of the league to take them through the remainder of the season when the previous duo of Paddy Fox and Malachy Coyle resigned.
Down may have only won one of their seven league games, but manager Conor O’Neill took a lot of positives from their performances and they were unlucky in some of their games to have come out on the wrong side of the results. For those reasons, Down will be favourites to triumph on Saturday afternoon but, within the squad, it is very much a case of both teams being on a even footing.
“We had a great league encounter against Fermanagh, which we narrowly came out on top in and I have no doubt Saturday will be a similar challenge,” said O’Neill.
“We prepare for every game like it’s our final and have never underestimated any opponent. For many of this team, it will be a first championship game together, similarly for my backroom team. I can safely say every one of us is looking forward to it, making your mark at this level is what county football is all about.
“I’m confident in the depth and quality of my squad and I’ve seen a real desire in my players that they are relishing the game ahead. The league campaign has really unified this group and their effort at training has been second to none.
"We cannot wait to cross that white line this weekend."
