2010 Football Championship Draw
All-Ireland champions Kerry will have to beat Cork once again if they want to reclaim the Munster SFC crown after all four provincial draws for the 2009 Championship were made on Thursday evening.
The draws were conducted at Croke Park and broadcast live on RTÉ Two television, as well as being available live worldwide on RTÉ.ie.
Connacht – 2009 runners-up Galway and winners Mayo have been paired on the same side of the Connacht draw. Galway and Roscommon were already aware that they faced Quarter-Final trips to New York and London respectively, the Tribesmen just recently having won the 2009 FBD League in the Big Apple. The third quarter-final sees a very exciting looking clash between Sligo and Mayo.
The winners of that then face either New York or Galway with Leitrim already in a semi-final where they await London or Roscommon.
Jack O Connor s Sam Maguire holders begin next year s provincial campaign at the quarter-final stage against John Evans Tipperary, a side who made very decent strides in 2009. The reward for the winners – if that is the right word – is a clash with Munster champions Cork in the provincial semi-final where Conor Counihan s charges will no doubt want to hit the ground running after performing so magnificently this year only to fall at the final hurdle. They defeated Kerry after a replay in last year s Munster semi-final and last month s loss at Croke Park only adds another motive to their desire to want to repeat that.
The other side of the draw sees Clare and Waterford paired off in a quarter-final with last year s unfortunate Munster runners-up Limerick awaiting the victors of that contest in the last four.
In Leinster, Wexford will provide the first opposition for a Dublin side gunning for a sixth successive provincial crown. Those teams meet in a quarter-final and should the Dubs progress they could once again meet old foes Meath en route to the decider.
That pairing would need the right results though with the Royals drawn to play in the Preliminary Round against Offaly. The winners of that thenÓgo on to face Laois in the quarter-final and whoever emerges victorious there will face Wexford or Dublin.
On the other side of the draw Mick O Dwyer s Wicklow take on Carlow with the winners meeting Westmeath, while the other quarter-final sees Kieran McGeeney s Kildare – Leinster runners-up last year – lying in store for either Louth or Longford.
The Ulster Championship begins with a cracking-looking Preliminary Round encounter between Derry and Armagh and a further intriguing fixture awaits the winners who will take on Monaghan, while Cavan will begin their campaign against Fermanagh also on that side of the draw..
Finally, Ulster champions Tyrone – who lost their All-Ireland crown when ousted at the semi-final stage by Cork in 2009 – start with a repeat of last year s provincial decider when they face Antrim, with the winners in line to take on the victors of an attractive looking quarter-final pairing between Donegal and Down.
2010 All-Ireland Football Championship Provincial Draws:
Munster SFC:
Quarter-Final:
A: Clare v Waterford
B: Kerry v Tipperary
Semi-Finals:
Limerick v Winner Quarter-Final A
Cork v Winners Quarter-Final B
Leinster SFC:
Preliminary Round:
1: Louth v Longford
2: Wicklow v Carlow
3: Meath v Offaly
Quarter-Finals:
A. Winner Game 1 v Kildare
B. Winner Game 2 v Westmeath
C: Winner Game 3 v Laois
D: Wexford v Dublin
Semi-Finals:
Winners Quarter-Final A v Winners Quarter-Final B
Winners Quarter-Final C v Winners Quarter-Final D
Ulster SFC:
Preliminary Round:
Derry v Armagh
Quarter-Finals:
A: Antrim v Tyrone
B: Donegal v Down
C: Cavan v Fermanagh
D: Monaghan v Derry OR Armagh
Semi-Finals:
Winners Quarter-Final A v Winners Quarter-Final B
Winners Quarter-Final C v Winners Quarter-Final D
Connacht SFC:
Quarter-Finals:
A: New York v Galway
B; London v Roscommon
C: Sligo v Mayo
Semi-Finals:
Winner Quarter-Final C v Winner Quarter-Final A
Leitrim v Winner Quarter-Final B
22-Oct-09 by GAA.ie
