Football

Tyrone and Monaghan to clash in Ulster Championship quarter-final

Drew Wylie and Mattie Donnelly will lock horns again in the opening round of the 2018 Ulster SFC
Drew Wylie and Mattie Donnelly will lock horns again in the opening round of the 2018 Ulster SFC Drew Wylie and Mattie Donnelly will lock horns again in the opening round of the 2018 Ulster SFC

THE clash of Ulster champions Tyrone against Monaghan was the pick of the fixtures in the Ulster Senior Football Championship draw for 2018

The counties have split four of the last five Anglo-Celt Cups between them and they will go head-to-head in the Championship for the first time since 2014, when the Red Hands edged a nerve-jangling quarter-final by a point, at Healy Parrk, Omagh next year.

Elsewhere, new Donegal manager Declan Bonner will tackle Cavan in his first Championship match at senior level and the winners will travel to Celtic Park to take on Damian McErlain’s Derry.

Down have home advantage (and former Saffron joint manager Gearoid Adams in their backroom team) against an Antrim side now managed by Lenny Harbinson. Meanwhile, Fermanagh’s new manager Rory Gallagher will prepare his side for the visit of Kieran McGeeney’s Armagh. The Orchardmen were comfortable winners when the sides met in the 2017 Qualifiers.

The winners of the Fermanagh versus Armagh quarter-final will progress to a semi-final against Tyrone or Monaghan and former Red Hand skipper Sean Cavanagh sees those two as the strongest teams in the province.

“It’s an interesting one,” said Cavanagh after last night’s draw.

“We haven’t played a Championship game at home in Omagh for a number of years and we probably tend to play better away from home.

“I suspect that Tyrone and Monaghan might be the two strongest teams in the Ulster Championship next year, so it’s a real cracker to start.”

Monaghan lost to Down in a semi-final surprise last year, but recovered to reverse that result and make the All-Ireland quarter-finals. Allstar forward Conor McManus says the Farneymen will strive to reach the ‘Super-8’ stage (which will take the place of quarter-finals) next season.

“It doesn’t come any tougher than that,” he said after his county was drawn with Tyrone.

“But if you’re going to win the Ulster Championship you’re going to have to have a crack at Tyrone somewhere along the line. It’s a big test for us.”

He added: “Our aim this year is to be involved in the Super-8s, with the appeal that it has.

“Three quarter-finals in the height of the summer can only be good and that’s the appeal for every team, that’s the aim and we’ll be no different.”

The Ulster Championship draw was made live on RTE last night by Ulster secretary Michael Hasson and Down player Kevin McKernan. Their counties will meet in Newry and Burren clubman McKernan said he was “happy with a home draw”.

“It’ll be a tough battle no doubt,” he said.

“Last year gave a lot of younger boys on our panel a massive confidence boost, a run in the Championship does that. We’re looking forward to a new year and we have an Antrim man (Gearoid Adams) in with us, so that’ll add something different to it as well.”

Elsewhere, kingpins Mayo and Galway will clash at the quarter-final stage of the Connacht Championship, meaning defending champions Roscommon have a straightforward route to another final.

Cork and Kerry have been kept apart in Munster, while All-Ireland champions Dublin will begin the defence of the Sam Maguire against either Offaly or Wicklow in a Leinster draw that paired Pete McGrath’s Louth against fellow Down native Steven Poacher who is part of the Carlow management team.

2018 FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP DRAWS

Munster SFC

Quarter-finals: Clare v Limerick, Tipperary v Waterford

Semi-finals: Clare/Limerick v Kerry; Tipperary/Waterford v Cork

Connacht SFC

Quarter-finals: New York v Leitrim, Sligo v London, Mayo v Galway

Semi-finals: New York/Leitrim v Roscommon; Mayo/Galway v London/Sligo

Leinster SFC

First round: Laois v Wexford, Louth v Carlow, Offaly v Wicklow

Quarter-finals: Laois/Wexford v Westmeath; Louth/Carlow v Kildare; Offaly/Wicklow v Dublin, Longford v Meath

Semi-finals: Laois/Wexford/Westmeath v Louth/Carlow/Kildare, Offaly/Wicklow/Dublin v Longford/Meath

Ulster SFC

Preliminary round: Donegal v Cavan

Quarter-finals: Derry v Donegal/Cavan; Down v Antrim; Fermanagh v Armagh; Tyrone v Monaghan