DIVISION FOUR
CARLOW
Manager: Niall Carew
Fixtures: Jan 28 (7pm): Wicklow (H); Feb 4 (6pm): Waterford (A); Feb 19 (2pm): Laois (H); Feb 26 (2pm): Leitrim (A); March 5 (1pm): London (A); March 18 (5pm): Sligo (H); March 26 (1pm): Wexford (A)
Last year: Seventh in Division Four
CARLOW manager Niall Carew gave his thoughts on the set-up of the Leinster Championship a good airing over the winter, but his first job this year will be to make the Barrowsiders more competitive in Division Four.
Carlow managed just the one win in the basement division last year, to bottom side Waterford, and were on the end of heavy defeats to the likes of Sligo and Tipperary.
They lost O’Byrne Cup games to Meath and Longford before pulling out of the final group game with Laois due to being unable to field.
LAOIS
Manager: Billy Sheehan
Fixtures: Jan 29 (2pm): Sligo (A); Feb 5 (2pm): Wexford (H); Feb 19 (2pm): Carlow (A); Feb 25 (7pm): Wicklow (H); March 4 (6pm): Waterford (H); March 19 (2pm): Leitrim (A); March 26 (1pm): London (A)
Last year: Seventh in Division Three, relegated
LAST year was a grim one for football in Laois – relegated to Division Four in the spring, they lost their Leinster Championship opener to Wicklow before also exiting the inaugural Tailteann Cup in the first round at the hands of Westmeath. Manager Billy Sheehan knows he has a substantial job of work to do if they are to get out of Division Four at the first attempt.
In the O’Byrne Cup, they recovered from a heavy loss to Longford to register a morale-boosting draw with Meath in Navan.
LEITRIM
Manager: Andy Moran
Fixtures: Jan 29 (1pm): Waterford (H); Feb 5 (1pm): London (A); Feb 19 (2pm): Wexford (A); Feb 26 (2pm): Carlow (H); March 5 (2pm): Wicklow (A); March 19 (2pm): Laois (H); March 26 (1pm): Sligo (H)
Last year: Fourth in Division Four
LEITRIM were erratic in last year’s National League, registering impressive wins over Tipperary and Wexford, but losses to London and Sligo cost them a promotion push.
While they gained revenge on the Exiles in the Connacht Championship, they were dismissed by eventual All-Ireland champions Galway before their Tailteann Cup campaign was cut short at the quarter-final stage by a penalty shoot-out loss to Sligo.
There were chinks of light for Andy Moran, but he will be after more solid signs of progress in 2023.
Keith Beirne was in accurate form for Moran’s men in their FBD League defeat to Galway, while Jack Heslin also impressed in flashes.
LONDON
Manager: Michael Maher
Fixtures: Jan 28 (7pm): Wexford (A); Feb 5 (1pm): Leitrim (H); Feb 18 (1pm): Wicklow (A); Feb 26 (1pm): Sligo (H); March 5 (1pm): Carlow (H); March 18 (6pm): Waterford (A); March 26 (1pm): Laois (H)
Last year: Fifth in Division Four
BACK from their Covid-enforced sojourn, London blasted out of the traps in last year’s league campaign, winning their first three on the trot. However, their form then fell off a cliff as they lost their final four games to scotch any hopes of promotion from the basement division.
In the Championship, they exited Connacht at the hands of Leitrim before falling at the first hurdle in the Tailteann Cup to Sligo.
They face a tough opening away day fixture in Wexford, but Maher’s men are capable of beating most Division Four opposition on their day.
SLIGO
Manager: Tony McEntee
Fixtures: Jan 29 (2pm): Laois (H); Feb 5 (2pm): Wicklow (A); Feb 19 (1pm): Waterford (H); Feb 26 (1pm): London (A); March 5 (2pm): Wexford (H); March 18 (5pm): Carlow (A); March 26 (1pm): Leitrim (A)
Last year: Third in Division Four
THE Yeats men missed out on promotion to Division Three by a single point last year, defeats to the ultimately promoted Cavan and Tipperary doing the damage come the end.
Tony McEntee’s side beat New York in the Big Apple before exiting the Connacht Championship to Roscommon. They then reached the semi-finals of the Tailteann Cup before defeat to Cavan again proved their undoing. McEntee will be confident they can learn from those losses this year.
Patrick O’Connor was an excellent target man in their FBD League defeat to Roscommon earlier this month, while the likes of Sean Carabine, Pat Spillane and Nathan Mullen also appear raring to go.
WATERFORD
Manager: Ephie Fitzgerald
Fixtures: Jan 29 (1pm): Leitrim (A); Feb 4 (6pm): Carlow (H); Feb 19 (1pm): Sligo (A); Feb 25 (7pm): Wexford (H); March 4 (6pm): Laois (A); March 18 (6pm): London (H); March 26 (1pm): Wicklow (H)
Last year: Bottom of Division Four
WATERFORD were the winner of the National League’s wooden spoon in 2022, picking up just the single point from their seven games – that coming in an opening day draw with Munster rivals Tipperary.
Matters didn’t improve much for Ephie Fitzgerald’s men come Championship time, losing at the first hurdle in Munster to Tipperary, before suffering a heavy defeat to Wicklow in the preliminary round of the Tailteann Cup.
The Déise were on the end of another heavy defeat, this time to Limerick, in the McGrath Cup at the start of this month and finished bottom of their group as they were also easily dismissed by Tipp.
Another tough year could lie in store for Fitzgered & co.
WEXFORD
Manager: John Hegarty
Fixtures: Jan 28 (7pm): London (H); Feb 5 (2pm): Laois (A); Feb 19 (2pm): Leitrim (H); Feb 25 (7pm): Waterford (A); March 5 (2pm): Sligo (A); March 18 (7pm): Wicklow (H); March 26 (1pm): Carlow (H)
Last year: Sixth in Division Four
THE Yellowbellies are under new management for 2023, in the form of former player John Hegarty, and they will have their sights firmly set on getting out of Division Four.
They finished finished sixth in last year’s Division Four after a run of three losses in their opening three games, but their form picked up going into the Leinster Championship, where they beat Offaly in the first round before a predictable hiding at the hands of perennial provincial champions Dublin. Offaly took their revenge in the preliminary round of the Tailteann Cup to put an end to an underwhelming year.
Mark Rossiter aside, Wexford lacked a scoring edge in their O’Byrne Cup defeats to Kildare and Westmeath, something Hegarty will be searching for a quick solution to in the league.
WICKLOW
Manager: Oisín McConville
Fixtures: Jan 28 (7pm): Carlow (A); Feb 5 (2pm): Sligo (H); Feb 18 (1pm): London (H); Feb 25 (7pm): Laois (A); March 5 (2pm): Leitrim (H); arch 18 (7pm): Wexford (A); March 26 (1pm): Waterford (A)
Last year: Eighth in Division Three, relegated
WHEN he took the job towards the end of last year, Oisín McConville insisted the standard of football in the Garden county was good enough to compete. The Division Four campaign will be the litmus test for that theory.
Wicklow endured a miserable Division Three campaign last year, ending in relegation, although they did recover in time to blitz Laois in the Leinster Championship before exiting at the hands of Meath.
McConville’s men were competitive for 40 minutes against an experimental Dublin side in their first O’Byrne Cup game, while between that and the other group defeat to Offaly, the Armagh man took a look at no less than 33 players.
