After the conclusion of the group stage, the business end of the race for the Frank Fox Cup really begins this week. Salthill/Knocknacarra, Maigh Cuilinn, Corofin and Annaghdown all consolidated top spot in their groups with wins at the weekend and will skip the preliminary quarter final round. After some games with great entertainment, we know the eight teams to face each other in the preliminary quarter finals this week and the four teams set to fight it out in the relegation semi-finals.
Despite their one point win over Milltown, Barna will play Monivea/Abbey in one relegation semi-final and after losing their final two group games, Claregalway will play Caherlistrane in the other semi-final.
The preliminary quarter finals will see teams that came second in their group face off against a team that came third in their group. After having to delay the start of the championship due to Galway’s lengthened run in the All-Ireland championship, these games must be played this week due to Connacht club championship fixtures. Any team that is a dual club or has a player playing hurling will have to play their games on Thursday evening as it is a hurling weekend. The four preliminary fixtures are St. James’ v Killannin, Leitir Mór v Dunmore MacHales, Tuam Stars v Mountbellew/Moylough and Milltown v Oughterard.
Tuam Stars v Mountbellew/Moylough
One of the two games to be played on Thursday will see David Donnellan come up against his home club. Tuam lost to Corofin on Sunday evening but if it was not for some wayward shooting, they could easily have won it. Quite similar to their league final loss to the same team, they had plenty of chances but could not convert enough to get the win they possibly deserved.
Val Daly’s side knew they would be playing in a preliminary quarter final no matter the result against Leitir Mór, but he would be extremely disappointed in the manner of his side's defeat. Mountbellew/Moylough lost John Daly to a red card early on, which will needlessly rule him out of this week's game. More disappointing will be the goal they conceded;with time almost up, Leitir Mór kicked a long ball into full forward Eamonn Ó Loingsigh, who surely couldn’t believe his luck when his fist got to the ball without even jumping and being surrounded by five Mountbellew/Moylough players who all failed to even jump for the ball. With Mountbellew/Moylough’s huge turnover of players this year, Tuam Stars will feel they should have enough to get through this game, especially after their last two performances. This game throws in at 7.45pm on Thursday in Duggan Park, Ballinasloe.
St. James’ v Killannin
St. James’ came second in their group after drawing with Monivea/Abbey, defeating Dunmore MacHales and losing to Maigh Cuilinn in a tight game on Saturday evening. St. James’ only scored six points in their defeat to Maigh Cuilinn and for the first time this year seemed to have a total over-reliance on Paul Conroy. The county midfielder was their only scorer in a dour first half of football and hit 3/6 points for his side. A tight game right throughout, but the Jimmies tired in the last 10 minutes and Maigh Cuilinn’s fitness told by getting five of the last seven scores.
Killannin lost two of their group games but the head to head between themselves, Milltown and Barna went in their favour with Barna needing to beat Milltown by two points and only winning by one. Killannin lost to Annaghdown on Sunday afternoon and will now have to travel to Corofin on Thursday evening to have a go at extending their championship. Despite scoring two goals in quick succession, an early second half red card cost them dearly as they faded out soon after that. The game throws in at 7.45pm in Corofin on Thursday and should be a close encounter.
Leitir Mór v Dunmore MacHales
Leitir Mór have already had a successful year and improved from 2023 by avoiding a relegation semi-final. They continue to show fantastic intent to play good quality football consistently trying to kick the ball into their full forward line and the joyous scenes after their win over Mountbellew/Moylough were brilliant to see.
The Gaeltacht side however will have a lot to overcome in Tuam Stadium on Saturday if they are to beat Gary Delaney’s side after they lost both Evan Ó Flatharta and Dylan Seoige to red cards in the space of three first half minutes. Goalkeeper Joe Ó Gubáin had a very influential second half with his driving runs up the field helping his side overcome the one man deficit that they played with for fourty minutes.
Dunmore MacHales will be disappointed in the fact that they lost two of their games by a single point and will be eager to prove they have more to give in this championship. Similar to Leitir Mór, the 2022 intermediate champions have improved on their opening season by avoiding a relegation play off and have played some quality football so far this campaign. Throw-in is at 3pm in Tuam Stdaium on Saturday.
Milltown v Oughterard
This is a game where both sides have benefitted from the new championship layout. Both sides lost two of their group games but each win was enough to get them through the group stage, thanks to their superior score differences. Milltown will be disappointed with losing to both Annaghdown and Barna as they had such a good season in 2023.
With Michael Martin and Mark Hehir in their forward line, Milltown will believe they have enough quality to get through this preliminary quarter final. Oughterard knew they needed to beat Claregalway by four points or more to get a better head to head and score difference and after a brilliant start to the game they faded out a little bit, but still managed to hold on to win by the four points in the end. The second game of a double header in Tuam Stadium on Saturday, this game throws in at 4.45pm
