Orchard on throne but there to be shot at POWER RANKINGS
THE MONTH IS JULY but for many, 2024 already feels over after a dramatic conclusion to the inter county season.
All of a sudden Armagh is a county filled with hype and hope but this is a victory will inspire others to believe, much as Down’s breakthrough in 1991 triggered a rise in Donegal, Derry, Tyrone and Armagh themselves.
Next year, for the first time in a long time, the Championship looks open for up to ten teams to win.
1: ARMAGH
The bookies will probably make Dublin or Kerry favourites next spring but for now, Armagh are deservedly top of the pile.
Remember in nine Championship matches this summer, they didn’t lose one.
Yes, they were beaten in a penalty shoot out by Donegal but in 90 minutes of football, they ended level.
Their defence was key to their glory. Add in the quality of their bench – Oisin O’neill and Stefan Campbell furthering their reputations on Sunday – and the variety of scorers they possess right through the team, and you can see why they are worthy champions.
Will they go back to back? Not likely.
2: KERRY
YES, Galway made it to the final, their victory over Dublin one of the stories of the summer.
But Kerry took Armagh to a dark place, and also to extra time, in a game they should have won. That’s why they are ranked above the Tribesmen.
David Clifford averaged three points from play during the Championship, scoring 2-29. Any team has a chance with him on board.
The poverty of their opponents in Munster and the group stages left them ill prepared for Armagh’s relentless intensity but they still were huge contributors to the football game of the year.
3: GALWAY
TWO points shy of becoming champions, it hardly takes a genius to figure out where Galway need to improve.
The only time they went beyond 20 points this summer was when London came calling.
That’s a long-term concern, as is the trauma caused by the nature of yesterday’s loss when Shane Walsh, Cein Darcy and Cillian Mcdaid missed presentable openings in the crucial final quarter.
For all the hype around Walsh and Damien Comer, they just didn’t deliver enough on the big day.
In Galway’s favour, their defence is rivalled only by
Armagh.
4; DUBLIN
YET again it feels like they are at a crossroads, just like in 2021.
Will Cluxton, Mccarthy, Fitzsimons and Mccaffrey go?
If they do, the alternatives aren’t up to the same standard. How could they be? All four are all-time greats.
What helps is Con O’callaghan’s form – his average of four points per game from play is the highest in the country.
It’s clear now that sleepwalking through Leinster and then winning their first two Group games by a combined total of 31 points did them no favours by the time Galway asked some serious questions in the All-ireland quarter-final.
Battle hardened by that loss, they can’t be written off next year.
5: DONEGAL
beat just Cork and Clare to win Munster.
Oisin Gallen, who hit 2-33 over the summer, is a star, Paddy Mcbrearty another. Donegal scored 7-147 across eight Championship games.
That’s good shooting given the quality of the opponent they faced.
Shortlist them for
2025.
6: MAYO
OKAY, they didn’t make the quarter-finals, but they beat Roscommon twice, who did make the last eight.
Then there is the fact they drew with Dublin, a game they would have won had they been as cynical to the Dubs as Jim Gavin’s side were to them in the dying seconds of the 2017 All-ireland final.
One point shy of Galway, beaten only on penalties by Derry, they have plenty going for them, not least Ryan O’donoghue, who contributed 43 per cent of their scores in the Championship.
7: DERRY
IT’S just as well Mickey Harte resigned because he and Derry were never a match.
Four Championship defeats across the summer barely merits a ranking place in the top ten yet when you recall the thrilling nature of their League final win over Dublin, and the maturation of Lachlan Murray, you have reason to be hopeful.
Conor Glass, Chrissy Mckaigue, Brendan Rodgers and Shane Mcguigan possess serious quality. Have Armagh better players? No, but when spring ended and summer began, they played as a team. Derry forgot to
do so.
8: LOUTH
THEY were one of the stories of the summer, losing by just a point to Armagh in the League before they took one scalp after the next in the Championship: Kildare, Meath, Cork.
Plus there was a draw with Monaghan, a close run thing against Dublin in the Leinster final and a deserved quarter-final spot in the All-ireland series. Sam Mulroy’s return of 3-43 could secure him an All-star.
9: ROSCOMMON
RELEGATED from Division One (again), beaten by Mayo (again and then again), they nonetheless took a couple of scalps, namely Cavan and Tyrone. Amid all this Diarmuid Murtagh scored 18 points from play. A class act.
10: TYRONE
A DECENT win over Cork, a good showing in Ulster against Donegal, but the defeat at home to Roscommon was shocking.
Over reliant on a Canavan, it feels like the late 1990s again.