Football Power Rankings #2 — Kildare the dark horse to be reckoned with in Leinster
A big win for Kildare sent a message through Leinster, while Cork’s jitters against Waterford didn’t help their case.
25 Limerick (26), 24 Offaly (22), 23 Laois (15), 22 Waterford (25), 21 Carlow (24), 20 Fermanagh, 19 Derry (16), 18 Leitrim (21), 17 Westmeath (19), 16 Armagh (14), 15 Clare (18), 14 Down (17), 13 Cavan, 12 Roscommon (11), 11 Meath (12)
10 Tipperary
They’re straight into the Munster semi-final after a fantastic league campaign, winning Division 3. Cork awaits who struggled to overcome Waterford, so Tipperary will be keen to inflict further damage on the Rebels’ footballers. A win and another Munster final would extend their fantastic renaissance as a growing football count (Down from 9)
9 Cork
Cork got a massive scare against Waterford, winning only by one point in the end. Tipperary awaits next and they’ll be buoyed by Cork’s struggles against the Déise, and will want to overturn the result in the hurling. Cork have massive improvements to make to have any hope of threatening in Munster. (Down from 8)
8 Galway
After winning Division 2 in the Allianz League, scoring plenty along the way, Galway’s game against Mayo in a few weeks time will tell everything we need to do about Connacht this year — it should be a cracker in Pearse Stadium. (Down from 7)
7 Kildare
Our big movers in the top 10 this week, Kildare were sublime against Laois, beating them by 14 points. A win against Meath in a week’s time and Kildare will be back in the big time of a Leinster final for the first time since 2009. Things are looking up for the Lilywhites. (Up from 10)
6 Monaghan
If the Monaghan boys can overcome Cavan on Sunday, it’ll be another Ulster quarter-final for the Oriel County. They rank favourably after a strong league campaign, but have a tough path towards Ulster glory — after Cavan is Down who were strong overcoming Armagh last weekend. (No Change)
5 Tyrone
Tyrone ran out 11 point winners in their opener against Derry. Derry were poor, however, and the game never lifted to championship heights, so we can’t justify lifting Tyrone any higher than last week’s #5 just yet. (No Change)
4 Donegal
Donegal await Tyrone in the Ulster semi-final in a few weeks time. Tyrone’s win in Derry wouldn’t have done much to put off Donegal, who will be tasting more blood after their demolition of Antrim in the quarter-final. (No Change)
3 Mayo
Mayo meet Galway this weekend in what will likely decide the path of the Connacht title this year. Galway will be no pushovers in Pearse Stadium, but for now Mayo are on the tails of Kerry and Dublin as one of the top teams in the country. (No Change)
2 Kerry
The Kingdom meet Clare in Ennis on Sunday, their first outing since winning the league in the spring. It should be a penalty kick for Kerry, who have been faced with some uncharacteristic controversy recently with the Brendan O’Sullivan doping story. Still, that shouldn’t take away from a fifth Munster final in a row. (No Change)
1 Dublin
The Dubs didn’t blow Carlow out of the park as many would have expected, and may now be done the talismanic Diarmuid Connolly as far as the semi-finals, but Dublin are just pulling into third gear. A Leinster semi-final awaits against either Offaly or Westmeath. (No Change)
