This may only be the third weekend of the league season, but it offers an opportunity for a number of clubs to firmly state their intentions for the season. The big game of the weekend in the Super League is the meeting of Castlebar Celtic and Ballina Town on Sunday in Celtic Park. With both sides currently sitting in first and second place in the table respectively, a win for either could seriously damage the others chance to go on and win the league at the end of the season, due to the condensed nature of the new league set up.
Both sides have won one and drawn one of their opening games. The defending champions opened their season with a no score draw at home to Westport United and followed that up with a 4-2 win over Ballinrobe Town. While Celtic dismantled Manulla with ease on the opening day before being held by Swinford. Castlebar Celtic manager Declan Kilkelly knows it’s going to be a tough game on Sunday. “We’ve a big game now against Ballina Town, there a good side but we’ll be looking for the points. We had plenty of chances last week against Swinford, but we didn’t take them and they held us to the draw.”
After playing two seasons in the League of Ireland A league, before the first team came back to the Super League, Kilkelly knows that his side have a big target on their backs that everyone else will be aiming at. “That’s the way it is, everyone will be looking to have a go at us and Swinford managed to put it up to us last week, there are no easy games in this league. With there only being eight teams in it, every game is nearly a must win if you want to win the title.”
Joining Celtic and Ballina Town on four points on the table is Swinford who had a good 2-1 away win over Ballinrobe Town on the opening day, before their draw with Celtic last time out. This weekend they will be travelling to Concannon Park to take on fourth place Claremorris who under Michael Hutton have adapted quickly to the Super League on their return from the Premier Division. They lost out by the odd goal in five to Manulla last weekend, but were the winners on the same scoreline at home to Iorras Aontaithe on the opening day.
The Erris men who host Manulla this weekend, followed that up with a 2-2 draw against Westport United last time out. United have also just appointed a new managment team following the decision of Barry Kilgannon to step down a number of weeks ago. The new managment team is made up of Kieran Mulchrone, James Fahy and Alan McLoughlin and they will be hoping that their new charges can pick up their first win of the season when they travel to south Mayo to take on the pointless Ballinrobe Town on Sunday.
In the Premier A table three sides have maximum points from their opening two games with Straide and Foxford United, Fahy Rovers and Conn Rangers all with two wins from two.
