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Kevin Madden: Tyrone are capable of reaching National League final

Kevin Madden is backing Tyrone to make a run at the National League title
Kevin Madden is backing Tyrone to make a run at the National League title Kevin Madden is backing Tyrone to make a run at the National League title

WITH the Dr McKenna Cup final due to be played this weekend, we can now turn our attentions to the much-anticipated Allianz National Football League.

The Championship will always be the ‘Mecca’’ in the GAA world, but for counties who have little or no chance of winning a provincial title, the League is arguably a more important competition for making the strides required to compete regularly at a higher level.

For others, getting into – and staying in – the top division are rated as crucial in order to be competing for the top prize in Gaelic football.

Our nine Ulster hopefuls this year are spread across the first three divisions. Some will be content with survival, while others will see anything less than promotion as a failure.

Here are my predictions for what the next nine or 10 weeks hold in store.

Division One

Even the most optimistic of Ulster supporters would find it difficult to predict a top flight campaign where we can escape any relegations.

We have a healthy representation of four teams – Cavan, Tyrone, Donegal and Monaghan.

Big-hitters Dublin, Kerry and Mayo, along with Roscommon, make up the rest of the competition. But which end of the table can we expect to see them all finish?

It is now widely accepted that if you want to be challenging for honours in September then top flight football is the only place to lay the foundations.

So what we are going to see come February is eight top quality teams fighting ferociously hard for every two points on offer.

Even though they have just climbed the ladder, Mickey Harte’s Tyrone represent our best chance of making the League finals.

Many of us will be looking on in anticipation to see if they adopt a more consistent approach to their free-taking which has been a major issue in recent seasons. During the Dr McKenna Cup we have seen Peter Harte, Mark Bradley, Darren McCurry and Lee Brennan all hitting frees from the right hand side of the pitch.

That gives Mickey Harte four very accomplished free-takers at his disposal, but who can handle the pressure best is what matters most.

I think either McCurry or Peter Harte will get the nod, but chopping and changing at the first sign of a dip in form cannot happen, otherwise it will be a case of Groundhog Day for Tyrone.

On the other side of the pitch there are fewer options. Conor McAliskey was selected to hit them against Cavan, but his injury has left Tyrone bare on options with just Ronan O’Neill or Sean Cavanagh in a position to take up the reins.

Mickey Harte will be keen to get some stability and consistency in their free-taking moving into Championship.

With some big name retirements in the last few months, it is hard to know if this period of transition may see Donegal struggle in Division One.

They still have a core of real top quality players which can see them survive. Malachy O’Rourke has squeezed quite a lot out of Monaghan in his four seasons to date, but I wonder have the Farneymen maybe now hit the plateau?

The fact that they won an Ulster U21 championship in 2016 may help to freshen things up.

Having worked so hard to get a shot at top flight football, Cavan will be keen to stay there under new manager Mattie McGleenan.

Like Roscommon, they were playing Division Three football just three years ago.

They meet in Hyde Park in the last round and this could be a game that everything will ride on – for both teams.

Predictions

Tyrone: Play-offs

Donegal: Mid-table

Monaghan: Survival – bottom half

Cavan: Relegation strong possibility

Pete McGrath's Fermanagh can push for promotion
Pete McGrath's Fermanagh can push for promotion Pete McGrath's Fermanagh can push for promotion

Division Two

In the second tier, we have three Ulster teams – Derry, Down and Fermanagh.

With the remainder made up of Clare, Meath, Kildare, Galway and Cork, this could represent the most competitive division, with very little separating top from bottom at the end.

A youthful looking Derry side have really impressed during the Dr McKenna Cup. Add in a few more experienced heads, possibly the Slaughtneil contingent at some stage, and I feel that the confident Oak Leafers will fancy their chances at promotion.

Fermanagh fought very hard in 2015 to gain promotion to Division Two.

Last year they had to scrap even harder for consolidation, finishing a respectable fourth. But they won’t need reminded of the fact that they finished on six points, the same number as Armagh, who got relegated.

I fancy Pete McGrath’s men to stay up once again and, if they can get early points on the board, promotion wouldn’t be out of the question.

I know this won’t make me very popular with my Down brethren, but I can see the Mournemen picking up from where they left off last season and really struggling in Division Two.

A lot will depend on any impact the Kilcoo contingent will make as they looked light on quality and experience during the Dr McKenna Cup.

Alan Davidson really impressed in the McKenna Cup, but it will take more than one ‘rookie’ forward to get the scores required to stay in Division Two.

It is yet unclear just who else will be available to Eamonn Burns and this uncertainty is worrying. If you were to add in a fit Niall Madine, Caolan Mooney, Donal O’Hare, Mark Poland, a couple of Johnstons and Conor Laverty then that would be a serious forward line to pick from.

The chances of that happening are slim to none, so early wins over Fermanagh (home) and Clare (away) might be required to build momentum.

Predictions

Fermanagh: Should survive and can push for promotion spot

Derry: Good shout for promotion

Down: Lingering in bottom half with relegation a possibility.

KIeran McGeeney's Armagh will be chasing promotion
KIeran McGeeney's Armagh will be chasing promotion KIeran McGeeney's Armagh will be chasing promotion

Division Three

Our final two, Antrim and Armagh, make up the numbers in Division Three.

Most of the teams in the third tier are capable of beating each other so home advantage may play a big part in lots of games. With home ties against Longford, Sligo and Laois, Antrim will be hoping to pick up four points from six and another two on the road against either Offaly or Louth. With a lot of new faces on the panel and some uncertainty over the availability of more experienced players, it is hard to see the Saffrons pull it all together in time.

I fancy Armagh to do well to set them up nicely for Championship. With more options now in attack, Jamie Clarke is sure to be joined by Crossmaglen’s next big thing – Oisin O’Neill – who is destined to become a star in the years ahead.

This will significantly strengthed their forward line, but it will be important that too much pressure isn’t placed on those young shoulders too soon.

Predictions

Armagh: Promotion

Antrim: Relegation strong possibility