FIXTURES

The final round of matches in the Shoe City senior football league is the main item on the fixtures front in the County this weekend as there are a couple of semi-final places to be sorted out and the second relegation spot has also to be determined to see who is relegated along with Monaghan Harps. There are two games on Friday evening, Inniskeen at home to Scotstown and Castleblayney at home to Clontibret both at 8 PM with the other three games taking place on Sunday, Carrickmacross at home to Magheracloone, Latton away at Truagh and Ballybay facing the already relegated Monaghan Harps, with all those games on Sunday at 3.00 PM.

Also on Sunday, there is the second semi-final of the Monaghan Electric intermediate football league when Doohamlet and Aughnamullen meet in O'Neill at 2:30 PM to decide who will play Donaghmoyne in the intermediate football league final. It is semi final time also in the Euro Tech Junior football league, with Clones enjoying home advantage against Emyvale, that one also on Sunday at 2:30 PM with the winners taking on Cremartin in the final.

AIB ULSTER CLUB JUNIOR HURLING CHAMPIONSHIP SEMI FINAL

Castleblayney HC v Clonduff (Down): Crossmaglen: Sunday October 28th @
12.30pm

Following their victory over Donegal champions Burt in the quarter-final two weeks back, Castleblayney HC now face an even stronger challenge when the take on the Down Junior champions Clonduff in the semi-final of the Ulster club hurling Junior championship in Crossmaglen on Sunday. Following their disappointment in the Down championship last year when they lost out in the final to Balella, Clonduff came good this year and they have a strong, experienced panel as they also added the Down Feis cup title to their Junior championship. That victory put them into the Ulster series, where they met Niamh Colm Cille of Tyrone in the quarter-final where they proved too strong on the day in what turned out to be quite a one sided clash in Brocagh. It was also an historic occasion for the Down club as they made it past the provincial first round for the first time. In that game against the Tyrone champions, they led by 0-8 to 0-3 at half-time but the man that made the difference, Paddy Grant came off the bench to fire in two goals in the space of five minutes midway through the second half to turn the game completely in Clonduff's favour. In that game too Clonduff showed themselves to be a team with a fine spread of talent, strong defenders in John Murphy and Shay Murnin while Christy Young in midfield is an accomplished player and in Ryan Brannigan they have a player who can pick off points from a range of distances and angles that makes him difficult to police. For Castleblayney HC it will be a matter of picking up where they left off against Burt where they capitalised on their strengths in defence, with Eoin Leonard at full and Peter Treanor at centre back proving pivotal. Mark Treanor in midfield too is a vital cog but it was the striking force of Hugh Byrne, Fergal Rafter and Brian McGuigan that ultimately got them over the line. Hugh Byrne finished that day with 2-2, and Fergal Rafter with 1-7 and a similar return on Sunday in Crossmaglen would go a long way to seeing Castleblayney booking their place in the final.Throw-in in Crossmaglen on Sunday is at 12.30pm with extra time and finish on the day the arrangement.

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