ARMAGH were, even by Tipperary’s admission, the best side in Division Three last year and yet managed to miss out on promotion.
Four games in they’ve been the best side again so far this year (except against Longford) and having already beaten two of their top-four rivals, they look a safer bet to go up this time.
The wins over Longford and Westmeath were contrasting, with Kieran McGeeney labelling his own side “terrible” after the Longford game, but perhaps in winning that there showed the difference in last year and this. If they’ve found a way to win when they’re playing badly then they’ll be hard enough for anyone to work with.
Ethan Rafferty and Rory Grugan have been leading the way and there’s no doubt Armagh will take a serious satisfaction from their scoring tally, hitting 6-60 despite suffering the well documented losses that they did last winter.
Fermanagh have been neck-and-neck with them throughout the campaign and indeed it’s perhaps the difference in those two and the rest of the league that their managers have been demanding improvement even on a winning run.
The Ernemen’s propensity for racking up big tallies of wides could yet undermine them and the defensive solidity they’ve been aiming for has not yet been achieved, even if things are a lot better than this time last year.
They will relish the thought of Armagh coming to Brewster Park on March 18 and you sense that there’s more in it for Fermanagh than there is for Armagh, given they’ll have been to Westmeath the week previous and have to go to Longford the week after.
Either of those two could still snatch a spot in the top two, though neither has been as consistent as the pair in front of them.
Neither, however, has to worry about anything behind them. The third tier has split very nicely into two leagues within one, though Derry’s presence in the lower half has been the one surprise to many.
They are far from out of the woods and should they fail to win in Armagh then they’ll have to take three points from their final two games against Sligo and Wexford to keep themselves safe beyond doubt.
Offaly don’t look like getting anything out of a tough campaign while Cathal Corey’s Sligo side have shown flashes, and they might just have enough to keep their heads above water with the Oak Leafers.
Who’ll be in the final? Armagh and Fermanagh
Who’ll be relegated?Offaly and Wexford
Top scorers
John Heslin (Westmeath) 1-24 (1-0p, 0-17f)
Ethan Rafferty (Armagh) 2-18 (0-3f)
Seamus Quigley (Fermanagh) 3-9 (0-7f, 0-1 45)
Rory Grugan (Armagh) 1-14 (1-0p, 0-8f)
Robbie Smyth (Longford) 1-13 (0-5f)
Adrian Marren (Sligo) 0-14 (0-7f, 0-2 45s)
Emmett Bradley (Derry) 2-8 (0-5f)
Nigel Dunne (Offaly) 0-13 (0-11f)
Ben Brosnan (Wexford) 0-12 (0-6f)
Results and fixtures
January 28: Armagh 2-17 Sligo 0-9; Derry 2-14 Westmeath 2-17; Fermanagh 3-7 Wexford 2-5; Offaly 1-13 Longford 3-18
February 4: Fermanagh 2-11 Offaly 1-6; Longford 1-13 Derry 1-6; Sligo 1-16 Wexford 1-13; Westmeath 1-11 Armagh 2-17
February 11: Armagh 1-11 Longford 1-10; Wexford 1-10 Westmeath 0-16; Derry 1-15 Offaly 0-13
February 18: Sligo 0-8 Fermanagh 0-13
February 24: Fermanagh 1-16 Derry 3-8
February 25: Westmeath 0-20 Sligo 0-14; Longford 1-12 Wexford 0-9; Offaly 1-9 Armagh 1-15
March 10/11: Armagh v Derry, Sligo v Longford, Wexford v Offaly, Westmeath v Fermanagh
TBC: Derry v Wexford
March 18: Fermanagh v Armagh, Longford v Westmeath, Offaly v Sligo
March 25: Longford v Fermanagh, Sligo v Derry, Westmeath v Offaly, Wexford v Armagh
