Longford and Wexford clash in the Leinster Under 20 Football Championship

Providing the opposition in the opening round clash at Parnell Park in Dublin this Wednesday evening (throw-in 7.30pm) are Wexford with the winners moving on to tackle Meath in the quarter-final the following week. 

Apart from playing a number of useful challenge games, Longford beat both Leitrim and Fermanagh in the Philly McGuinness Cup tournament and were unlucky losers in the other fixture against Sligo with just a solitary point separating the sides in the finish. 

Leading the charge in the championship will be attackers Jack Duggan (Clonguish)  and Keelin McGann (Kenagh), who have graduated to the county senior side this season, and the U-20 manager Kieran Carey (Clonguish) and his selectors Ray Kenny (Kenagh) and Ray Hussey (Mostrim) are working with a talented squad. 

While Wexford reached the final of the Andrew Corden Cup in their section of the U-20 Development League, they ended up losing against Carlow by a point but fielded understrength on that occasion after accounting for the same opposition in the group stage of the competition. 

Two of the key players missing were Jack Higgins and Rian Fitzpatrick, the powerful midfield pairing on the Gorey Community School that won the All-Ireland Post-Primary Schools Senior ‘B’ Championship title a few weeks ago and on the path to glory they beat Cnoc Mhuire, Granard in the Leinster semi-final.  

Higgins and Fitzpatrick are part of the current Wexford senior football squad and with this sort of quality, Longford will need to be wary in their bid to make further progress in the Leinster U-20 Championship.

The Longford U-20 line-out in the recent game against Sligo in the Philly McGuinness Cup Tournament. Sligo won by a point, 4-3 to 1-11: 

Cian McGuinness (Longford Slashers); Bryan Masterson (Abbeylara), Sean O’Sullivan (Sean Connolly’s), Oisin O’Toole (Dromard); Seadhna Ryan (Rathcline), Darren Moffett (Killoe Emmet Og), Dylan Lynch (Sean Connolly’s); Richard Prior (Rathcline), Conor Leonard (Mullinalaghta St Columba’s); Fionn Hourican (Dromard, 0-2), Keelin McGann (Kenagh, 1-1), Cathal Gilligan (Abbeylara); Micheal Hynes (St Mary’s Granard), Jack Macken (Colmcille, 0-1), Jack Duggan (Clonguish, 0-7, six frees).  

Subs:- Matt Duffy (Dromard) for M Hynes (40 mins); Jamie Brady Hynes (St Mary’s Granard) for J Macken (45 mins); Diarmuid Kelly (Carrickedmond) for C Gilligan (45 mins).