It is fast approaching the business end of the football championship and twenty-four teams remain in the race for the Sam Maguire Cup. Hoganstand.com issues its mid-term report on all county teams and their standing in gaelic football at this point in time. League positions were taken into consideration but, at the end of the day, it's all about the championship.

1. CORK

Conor Counihan's men already have a first Munster SFC title in three years and the NFL Division 1 silverware in their trophy cabinet and it appears as though anyone with ambitions of winning the All-Ireland will have to beat the Rebel County.

2. DONEGAL

A greater emphasis on attack has put Jim McGuinness' men on the verge of creating history by winning back-to-back Ulster SFC titles. They have been mightily impressive in their wins over Cavan, Derry and Tyrone.

3. DUBLIN

The Sam Maguire Cup holders were a long way off their best as they stuttered to a Leinster semi-final win over Wexford but that may be the kick up the backside Pat Gilroy's players need ahead of their provincial final showdown against arch rivals Meath.

4. MAYO

James Horan's charges have just one outing in the championship under their belts - a 4-20 to 0-10 semi-final success over Leitrim - but are hot-favourites to retain the Connacht SFC title at Sligo's expense and build on their NFL Division 1 final appearance against Cork.

5. KERRY

Serious question marks were raised over the futures of several of Kerry's stars following their five-point semi-final defeat at the hands of Cork but past experiences has taught us it would be foolish to write of Jack O'Connor's men.

6. DOWN

Finished third in the NFL Division 1 table, the Mourne County have since recorded championship wins over Fermanagh (2-10 to 1-8) and Monaghan (1-14 to 1-13). Showed commendable character during the second half against Monaghan and will need more of the same in the Anglo Celt Cup decider against Donegal.

7. MEATH

After a disastrous NFL campaign that saw them relegated to Division 3 and a failed attempted heave against manager Seamus McEnaney, everything is all of a sudden rosy again in the Royal garden but we will find out if the performance against Kildare was a flash in the pan on Sunday week.

8. TYRONE

A narrow Ulster semi-final defeat to Donegal is not a disaster for Mickey Harte's troops and if they can iron out the creases from the 0-10 to 0-12 loss then they could yet have a major say in the destination of the Sam Maguire Cup.

9. KILDARE

There will have been some serious soul searching done inside the Kildare dressingroom following the manner of their loss to Meath but Kieran McGeeney boasts an impeccable record in the qualifiers and they should progress to a quarter-final appearance, at least. The loss to Meath has taken the gloss of their NFL Division 2 success.

10. SLIGO

The Yeats County delivered one of the performances of the year when defeating Galway by 2-14 to 0-15 in the Connacht semi-final and will fancy their chances of pulling off another shock in Sunday's Connacht SFC final against Mayo.

11. WEXFORD

For the second year running it was a case of close but no cigar for the Model County against Dublin. A NFL Division 3 final appearance and a replayed championship win over Longford will stand Jason Ryan's men in goodstead as they approach this Saturday's All-Ireland qualifier trip to Tipperary.

12. LONGFORD

A NFL Division 3 title and three Leinster championship appearances is a significant return for Glenn Ryan's team but they are not finished yet as evidenced by their 0-17 to 2-8 qualifier first round win over Derry. Will be expected to continue their winning ways when Limerick visit Pearse Park on Saturday.

13. MONAGHAN

Relegated from Division 2, Monaghan were on fire during the first half of their Ulster SFC semi-final against Down but failed to maintain that high level of performance in the second half. Manager Eamonn McEnaney will look for a full 70-minute display from his troops against Laois this weekend.

14. GALWAY

Will look to take a leaf out of their hurling counterparts book when they travel to take on Antrim in Casement Park on Saturday. It's a game that the Connacht side will be expected to win but a lack of consistency has dogged them in recent seasons.

15. ROSCOMMON

The Rossies staged a remarkable second half comeback to send a fancied Armagh side packing from the All-Ireland qualifiers on a scoreline of 1-11 to 1-9. That result went some way towards making up for the 0-10 to 3-15 Connacht SFC quarter-final defeat by Galway.

16. LAOIS

Came in for plenty of criticism following their Leinster SFC defeat to Longford but a qualifier win over Carlow has steadied the ship somewhat. Manager Justin McNulty has demanded an improvement from his players ahead of this weekend's qualifier against Monaghan on home soil.

17. WESTMEATH

Gained revenge for their Leinster SFC exit at the hands of Louth when knocking the Wee County out in the first round of the qualifiers. However, their display against 13-man Louth in Mullingar did not inspire confidence and they are expected to bow out this Sunday against Kerry.

18. ANTRIM

Finished three points behind Monaghan in their Ulster SFC quarter-final clash but got their season back on track with a hard-fought 2-11 to 2-9 qualifier win away to London. Liam Bradley's men certainly won't fear Galway who visit Casement Park on Saturday.

19. TIPPERARY

Put up a brave fight against Kerry in the Munster SFC quarter-final and their confidence was restored following their 1-12 to 0-10 qualifier win over Offaly. The Premier County were relegated to Division 4 and face a tough test against Wexford in round 2 of the qualifiers on Saturday.

20. CLARE

As expected, the gulf in class between the top teams and the so-called weaker counties was exposed in the Gaelic Grounds yesterday but Clare can be proud of reaching a first provincial decider in 12 years after finishing third in the NFL Division 4 table.

21. LIMERICK

Maurice Horan's charges didn't do themselves justice in the first half of their Munster SFC semi-final defeat by Clare. They showed when they are capable of when fighting back from a 0-3 to 1-9 half-time deficit and will need a repeat of that second half display when they line out against Longford on Saturday.

22. WICKLOW

The Garden County's chances of getting an opening round Leinster SFC win over Meath was undermined by the loss of captain Leighton Glynn to injury and the dismissal of midfielder James Stafford. Manager Harry Murphy admitted the performance in their extra-time qualifier win over Waterford was 'brutal'. Promotion to Division 3 of the NFL for next year is a welcome development.

23. CAVAN

Terry Hyland has assembled a youthful team that appears to be heading in the right direction. A flurry of second half goals saw them overcome Fermanagh in round 1 of the qualifiers following their Ulster SFC defeat by Donegal. They endured an indifferent NFL Division 3 campaign and finished one place above the relegation zone.

24. LEITRIM

Survived a scare against London in the Connacht SFC with a narrow one-point victory before being outclassed by Mayo. The Barney Breen/George Dugdale managed side - who finished mid-table in Division 4 - will aim to redeem themselves when they welcome Wicklow to Carrick-on-Shannon on Saturday.

25. ARMAGH

Concern has been expressed about the state of Orchard County football following their surprise qualifier defeat to Roscommon which resulted in Paddy O'Rourke's departure as manager. Where they go from here will depend on who replaces him with some of the 2002 All-Ireland winning team being mention as possible candidates.

26. DERRY

Captain Paddy Bradley went public with criticism of how football is being run within Derry last week following their 2-8 to 0-17 defeat by Longford on the opening weekend of the qualifiers. They finished third from bottom in the Division 2 table and speculation surrounds the future of John Brennan as manager.

27. LOUTH

Consolidated their position in Division 2 of the NFL which, in itself, was a major achievement by Peter Fitzpatrick and his players. A late injury-time goal saw them scrape over Westmeath in their Leinster SFC opener but they were on the receiving end of a lesson by All-Ireland champions Dublin in the quarter-final. A combination of injuries and emigration played a part in their qualifier exit to Westmeath.

28. FERMANAGH

Promotion to Division 3 of the NFL was the main positive from Peter Canavan's first year as manager of the Ernesiders. There was also good news this weekend with the Tyrone legend committing to a second year at the helm.

29. CARLOW

Finished with only three wins to their credit in Division 4 of the NFL, two of which came against London and Kilkenny, yet, inspired by Brendan Murphy, forced Meath to a replay in the Leinster SFC. They were well beaten the second day but will take encouragement from the draw as they plot their future minus the services of manager Luke Dempsey.

30. LONDON

Narrowly missed out on a first Connacht SFC win since 1977 when being caught on the line by Leitrim, 1-8 to 0-12. Antrim knocked the Exiles out of the qualifier race when finishing with two points to spare but they have every reason to be confident about the future although captain Sean McVeigh - who is due to return home to Antrim - will be a massive loss.

31. OFFALY

The rebuilding job facing Tom Coffey became apparent when they slumped to a 0-6 to 0-19 Leinster SFC defeat to Kildare and made a tame exit from the All-Ireland SFC qualifiers to Tipperary. The Faithful County managed just one win in Division 3 of the NFL.

32. WATERFORD

Limerick ended their participation in the Munster SFC when inflicting a 2-12 to 0-7 defeat on John Owens' men. Their qualifier encounter against Wicklow went to extra-time but defeat was to be their lot. Their NFL Division 4 league record reads three wins, one draw and four defeats.

33. NEW YORK

A first Connacht SFC victory seems as far away as ever after a 24-point trouncing by Sligo at Gaelic Park.

34. KILKENNY

Finished with a score difference of -241 in Division 4 of the NFL. Tweet

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