Group A
Belnaleck v Teemore (Saturday, Donagh, 4pm)
A derby of sorts and there won’t be much between these sides, with the loser in for the dreaded relegation play off. A draw would favour Belnaleck, who have a point on the board from their draw with Kinawley.
Teemore are powered by Cian McManus, Ronan McCaffrey, Oisin Murphy and the McNallys, but possibly lack a bit of physique up front.
That is something that is not in short supply in Belnaleck. Che and Lee Cullen are giants of Fermanagh club football, while the towering Darragh McGurn is a commanding figure around the middle of the field, as is Kane Connors.
But they could be minus inspirational club captain Bryan Owens, who had been having a great season for the Leckers.
Enniskillen Gaels v Kinawley (Saturday, Tempo, 4pm)
Enniskillen are clearly the form team with victories over Teemore and Belnaleck already achieved in some style.
They are determined to make up for the disappointment of last year’s county semi-final defeat to Erne Gaels and are this year’s favourites, in a year when Derrygonnelly are not as strong as they might be.
Brandon Horan, Jonny Cassidy, John Reihill, Callum Jones and marksman Conor Love are all top-class performers in Simon Bradley’s well-drilled side.
Kinawley drew with Belnaleck and had a big win over Teemore in their last outing and have been in the top four in the county over the past few seasons.
Guided by the wily Dom Corrigan, they can look to his sons, Tomas and Ruairí, as seasoned operators.
They also have a powerful midfield in the Breen brothers, while Sean McManus and James Allen are also considerable players.
With the Gaels being hotly fancied, it is well set for Kinawley to spring a shock, but that is unlikely with the Gaels looking likely to make that semi-final slot.
Group B
Belleek v Derrygonnelly (Saturday, Irvinestown, 4pm)
THIS is the big clash of the weekend between last year’s county finalists and two sides have loads of history.
Derrygonnelly won that game and also the 2016 decider and have also beaten Erne Gaels in a few county semi-finals in recent times.
But the continued absence of Ryan, Conall and Garvan Jones has levelled the playing field somewhat and the Gaels will see this as a great opportunity to go straight to semi-final.
They are unbeaten, while the Harps surprisingly dropped a point at home to Devenish but bounced back with a big away win over Ederney.
Belleek have gone for broke by bringing in ex-Donegal boss Declan Bonner and ex-Donegal player Paul Brennan to guide their fortunes, while the Harps have the very astute Shane Ward, also from Donegal, as their coach.
Both sides are vastly experienced, and this could be a real cracker, or a snoozefest if caution dominates the day.
There is a sense of now or never in Belleek, having lost finals in 2016, 2022 and 2023.
Derrygonnelly have always known how to win tight games and will be keen to prove they still have the players to go all the way.
A hard one to call and we might even have a draw.
Ederney v Devenish (Saturday, Derrylin, 4pm)
DEVENISH have one point from their draw with Derrygonnelly, while enigmatic Ederney have lost both of their games.
Sean Cassidy is back in action for Ederney, which is a huge plus for them and Declan and Paul McCusker remain hugely influential figures.
Shaun McCarron and Shay Deazley are promising young players, but Ederney have been struggling to find any real consistency.
So have Devenish, who succumbed to Erne Gaels last time out. Fionan O’Brien, JJ O’Brien, Cian O’Brien, Jason Love, Stephen O’Brien and keeper Thomas Treacy are all major figures for a team with a remarkable championship record.
There are doubts about Lanty Feely and they are a bit short in scoring power, but they might just shade this encounter.
