Longford lose home advantage for championship opener

Longford has lost home advantage for their 2016 Leinster senior football championship opening round clash against Offaly.

They will also travel to O’Connor Park, Tullamore on Sunday, January 31 next for their maiden assignment in Division 3 of the Allianz NFL.

The dates and venues for next year’s Leinster senior hurling and football championships were agreed at a meeting of Leinster Council in Áras Laighean, Portlaoise last Wednesday evening.

While the programme of 2016 National League fixtures was officially released by Croke Park yesterday.

Longford, under the management of Denis Connerton, Ciaran Fox, Enda Macken and Derek Ryan, were due to meet Offaly for the third occasion in consecutive years in the Leinster Championship at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park.

However, with refurbishment works expected to be underway at the venue, Leinster Council fixed the game on May 15 for O’Connor Park, Tullamore.

It means that beyond 2016, on the next two occasions that Longford and Offaly are drawn to meet each other in the Leinster SFC, Longford will have the benefit of home soil.

The counties have a home and away agreement in place.

Dates and venues were also released for the Bord na Mona O’Byrne Cup and Kehoe Cup competitions, along with the Electric Ireland Leinster MFC and Eirgrid Leinster U-21 FC.

Arguably, the biggest news to emerge from the Leinster Council meeting was that reigning All-Ireland and Leinster senior football champions Dublin will begin their defence of the Delaney Cup with a quarter-final tie against the winners of Laois v Wicklow on Saturday, June 4 in Nowlan Park, Kilkenny.

It will be the first time since they played Longford at Pearse Park in 2006 that Dublin will play a Leinster senior championship match outside of Croke Park.

A motion to play the SFC quarter final involving Dublin and either Laois or Wicklow at Nowlan Park was passed when 22 of the 28 delegates present voted in its favour.

2016 Fixtures

FOOTBALL

Bord na Mona O’Byrne Cup (Group D)

Round 1: Sunday, January 3: Longford v Maynooth University

Round 2: Wednesday, January 6: Westmeath v Longford

Round 3: Sunday, January 10: Longford v Wicklow

Allianz National Football League Division 3

Round 1: Sunday, January 31: Offaly v Longford 2pm

Round 2: Sunday, February 7: Longford v Limerick 2pm

Round 3: Sunday, February 28: Longford v Kildare 2pm

Round 4: Sunday, March 6: Sligo v Longford 2.30pm

Round 5: Sunday, March 13: Longford v Tipperary 2pm

Round 6: Sunday, March 27: Clare v Longford 2pm

Round 7: Sunday, April 3: Longford v Westmeath 2pm

Leinster SFC

Round 1: Sunday, May 15 in O’Connor Park, Tullamore: Longford v Offaly

Quarter-final: Sunday, June 12 in Cusack Park, Mullingar: Longford/Offaly v Westmeath

Electric Ireland Leinster MFC

Round 1: Saturday, April 16 in Cusack Park, Mullingar: Westmeath v Longford

Eirgrid Leinster U-21 FC

Round 1: Wednesday, February 24 in Wexford Park: Wexford v Longford

HURLING

Bord na Mona Kehoe Cup (Group 1)

Round 1: Sunday, January 17: Longford v St Pats/Mater Dei

Round 2: Sunday, January 24: Longford v Trinity College

Round 3: Sunday, January 31: Longford v Kildare

Allianz National Hurling League Division 3B

Round 1: Sunday, March 6: Longford v Leitrim 2pm

Round 2: Sunday, March 13: Fermanagh v Longford 2pm

Round 3: Sunday, March 20: Sligo v Longford 2pm