Castlebar Celtic v Claremorris
Saturday August 27 at 6.30pm
In Celtic Park
The hosts were not in league action last weekend after their game with Manulla was postponed. With 12 games played Celtic are sitting in fourth place in the table well off the pace from the top two, but are locked in a battle for third with Ballyglass who are six points in front of them and Manulla two points further back. Last weekend Claremorris had a 2-0 victory at home against Glenhest Rovers thanks to goals from Conor Groarke and Oisin Brady. That win saw them pull seven points clear of the the two sides below in them in the relegation battle with five games to go in the league. A point at least would see them move further and secure their standing in the league for next season, but Celtic could have too much for them this time around.
Verdict: Castlebar Celtic
Glenhest Rovers v Ballyheane
Saturday August 27 at 6.30pm
In Glenhest
Things are getting really serious for Ballyheane now, with five games to go they are sitting second bottom in the table and one point behind Iorras Aontaithe in the battle to avoid the drop. A win on Saturday evening would go a long way to boosting their chances of staying in the top division next season. They played their last game eight days ago against title chasing Westport United and were beaten 3-0 which was their eighth defeat from 13 games. Having won just once so far in the league this season a second victory is a must for them at this stage. Glenhest were beaten last weekend by Claremorris on the road, but they have been having a fine season and currently sit in sixth place in the table thanks to four wins and three draws, another point this weekend would be a great result for them.
Verdict: Draw
Iorras Aontaithe v Ballyglass
Sunday August 28 at 2.30pm
In Carne Nash
The hosts were on the end of a major backlash from a Ballina Town side who have seen their ambitions to claim the title take a major whipping over the previous two rounds losing two on the bounce and falling to second place, two points behind league leaders Westport United. They were turned over 8-0 in Belleek last weekend and find themselves just one point out of the relegation places with five games left to go. It is not going to get any easier for them this weekend when Ballyglass come calling, the central Mayo outfit had a hard fought 3-2 win over Conn Rangers on the road last weekend with JP O'Gorman hitting the back of the net twice and Danny Broderick scoring the other.
Verdict: Ballyglass.
Manulla v Conn Rangers
Sunday August 28 at 2.30pm
In Carramore
The hosts had a weekend off from action last weekend and after tasting cup success and being safely in the middle of the pack, Conn Rangers will be hoping to surprise them this weekend. Conn Rangers are sitting rock bottom of the table with four points from their 13 league games, with just a win and a draw in the plus column. Last weekend they showed some great heart and fight to come from 3-0 down to lose by only the odd goal in five against Ballyglass, but they will need more of that this weekend and over the next few rounds along with a big slice of luck if they are going to extracate themselves from the relegation spots.
Verdict: Manulla.
