HOME ADVANTAGE for the second round of the All-Ireland football qualifiers will be decided by the toss of a coin, following Sunday evenings draw in Croke Park. While home advantage for this Saturdays first round of matches was based on the first team drawn from the bowl, the second round draw will consist of two bowls – the eight first round winners in one bowl and the eight beaten provincial semi-finalists in the other.

Therefore, the GAAs Central Competition Control Committee (CCCC) will toss a coin to determine which of those teams gets home advantage when they meet on Monday to confirm the throw-in times and venues for the eight second round games, which are all due to be played on Saturday week, July 11th.

Whichever team does win the toss is automatically entitled to home advantage, provided the CCCC deem their home ground is suitable for the fixture.

All eight first round games go ahead this Saturday: Donegal against Carlow, Monaghan against Armagh, Meath against Waterford, Wicklow against Fermanagh, Wexford against Offaly, Louth against Tipperary, Down against London, and Leitrim against Longford.

The usual period of extra-time will also be played if necessary, and provided replays are avoided, these eight first-round winners will then face off against one of the eight teams beaten in the provincial semi-finals: Kerry and Clare, from Munster; Roscommon and Sligo, from Connacht; Derry and Cavan, from Ulster; and Laois and Westmeath, from Leinster.

The draw itself will take place on TV3 shortly after 6pm on Sunday, following their live coverage of the Leinster senior hurling final between Dublin and Kilkenny.

If a first replay is required the draw will go ahead as scheduled, but with the second round game affected postponed until the following Saturday.

The GAA has also finalised admission prices for all of this weekends first round qualifiers, with entry to the stands, like last year, costing €20, while admission to terraces has been reduced by €5 to €10.

A further effort to maintain the positive attendance figures for the remainder of the championship saw the GAA yesterday launch a new range of ticket packages to cover the closing stages of both the football and hurling championship.

Six deals – five of which are new – are being offered which are aimed at allowing followers of football and hurling to combine quarter-final and semi-final games. The Hurling Heaven, package priced at €90, includes tickets for one hurling quarter- final and two semi-finals. The Football Feast offers fans tickets for two football quarter-final days and both semi-finals, and costs €99. That works out at less than €25 per match and, on last years ticket prices, offers savings of €35 and €60 respectively.

Other offers include a quarter and semi-final package covering one quarter-final and a semi-final, costing €65, and a Dual Deal for the quarter-final and semi-final stages of both the football and hurling championships priced at €175.There are also Club Pass and Group Pass offers.

The packages were announced by GAA president Christy Cooney at the opening of the new Ticket Shop on Lower Dorset St in Dublin, close to Croke Park.

"We have been very happy with attendances at our games to date this year," said Cooney, "but we have said all along that in these challenging times we would continue to review our ticketing arrangements in an effort to offer our members and followers value for money . . .

"We have attempted to cater for different types of GAA supporters by offering combined football and hurling deals and a variety of options and we are confident followers of our games will take up deals that will provide excellent live entertainment at an affordable price."

 

 

03-Jul-09 by IrishTimes.ie – Ian O Riordan

Please note that this weekends qualifier game is cash at the turn stiles except for the stand which is ticket only.   Any one interested in purchasing tickets should put their order in with their club secretary immediately and the tickets will be distributed to all club secretaries on Wednesday night.

Stand – €20*

Terrace/Sideline – €10

Student/OAP – €10

Under 16 s -FREE

 

*  €10 concession only for OAP s on Stand tickets

 

 

 

29-Jun-09 by Brendan Doyle – PRO

After a demoralising League campaign that saw the County Minor team swamped in all four outings, Leitrim are hoping for much better things next Saturday when they take on Roscommon in the ESB Connacht Minor Championship Semi-Final in Hyde Park next Saturday at 5.45 pm.

Like the Ladies team last weekend heading to Castlebar, the Minors are hoping that they can put a win-less Provincial League campaign behind them and spring what would be regarded as one of the major surprises of this years championships.

Although 12 weeks will have passed from Leitrims last competitive outing, the hope is that the time in between will have been used to rejuvenate a minor team that lost its four games by an average of 18.75 points but has undoubted talent in its ranks.

There is also the prize of a place in the Connacht and All-Ireland Quarter-Finals after yet another revamp of the Provincial competition saw the championship revert to the traditional knock-out system.

However, the biggest task for Leitrim is getting the self-belief back in the squad, something that was definitely hit for the last game of the League against Mayo when five first choice players failed to travel for the game in Ballyhaunis.

Roscommon scored a 4-10 to 2-3 victory when the sides met in the Minor League in Boyle in March, a victory illuminated by 1-3 from Scott Oates.

In that game, Leitrim got the perfect start of a first minute goal from Conor Beirne but RoscommonÓgradually took over and scored an unanswered 2-2, the goals coming from Oates and the dangerous Shane Leydon.

Leitrim trailed 2-8 to 2-1 at the break, the second goal coming from an Aaron Hickey penalty and while the second half saw Leitrim hold the home team scoreless for the first ten minutes, Roscommon were just too strong as they eased home.

Any hopes that Roscommon will be over-confident for Saturday would seemed to be dashed by the comments of Roscommon Minor Manager Gary Wynne who is expecting a typical Leitrim/Roscommon clash and preparing his troops accordingly, particularly with the addition of Under 21 star Cathal Shine who will give Roscommon huge midfield presence.

The Roscommon Manager, much like his Leitrim counter-part Sean Logan, is not reading anything into the League meeting between the sides but there is no doubt that Roscommons confidence will be boosted by the result.

For Leitrim, there is no doubt the talent is there Aughawillan pair Shane Flanagan and Morgan Quinn are very highly rated as is captain Sean McWeeney from Aughnasheelin.

However, one would prefer to see Flanagan back in his natural centre-forward position and Quinn in his natural centre-back slot rather than the swap between the pair that occurred during some of the League games earlier this year.

Melvin Gaels Packie Hill also impressed for the Minors during the year while Glencar/Manors James OBrien and Aaron Hickey are highly rated prospects.

Eslins Conor Beirne is another player to watch while Conor McWeeney, Shane Ryan, Micheal McWeeney, Kevin Davey, Brian Mulvey, Keith Boyle, Thomas Cornyn, Declan Brennan and Ronan Kennedy will all be in contention for starting places.

Leitrims record in the Minor Championship has been poor over the past decade with the last victory coming back in 2002 when the Minors defeated Sligo to reach the Connacht Final.

Since then, there have been a few near misses, most notably two years ago when a late Sligo rally in Ballinamore denied Leitrim a place in the Quarter-Finals.

However, the Minors have struggled in the main although as Under 16s two years ago, this squad did put in a series of good performances in the Ted Webb and Fr Manning Cups.

It is reported that the Minors have shown much improved form in challenge matches in recent weeks, most notably against Armagh, but the odds are still very much against them for next Saturday.

In some ways, Leitrim are in the perfect position of no hype, no pressure and no expectations in what is Leitrims last chance of Connacht glory this year. Leitrim will need to raise their game quite a bit, get a good start and build on it to shock Roscommon on Saturday.

 

 

 

 

 

This full report is available thanks to the Leitrim Observer
– it s available in this weeks edition of the Observer and online here

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

27-Jun-09 by John Connolly – LeitrimObserver.ie