Longford face Fermanagh yet again in the Tailteann Cup
Round 1 clash at Brewster Park in Enniskillen on Sunday, throw-in 3pm
Fermanagh are familiar opposition for Longford in the recent past as apart from the fairly regular meetings in the National Football League the counties will clash in the Tailteann Cup for the third time in the space of five years.
Brewster Park in Enniskillen this Sunday (throw-in 3pm) is the venue for the opening round game in the Tier 2 competition with Fermanagh the firm favourites to confirm their superiority over a badly shaken Longford team in the wake of the 21-point hammering they suffered against Westmeath in the Leinster Championship.
Injuries ruled Peter Lynn, Oran Kenny and Ryan Moffett out of that humiliating experience and joining them on the casualty list are Iarla O’Sullivan and the two-pointer specialist Dessie Reynolds (ankle ligament damage) in the build up to the Tailteann Cup now operating under a new format.
The versatile Ronan Sweeney returns after being unavailable for the local derby against Westmeath and while the absence of Dessie is a big blow in a lengthy spell out of action, Lynn and Moffett are expected to be fit to feature against Fermanagh.
While Westmeath went on to score a shock win over last year’s All-Ireland semi-finalists Meath in the next round and then beat Kildare to reach the final of the provincial series, the current status of Mike Solan’s side is low even though promotion was gained to Division 3 of the league.
Longford will face Fermanagh in the hope of springing a surprise but should they happen to fall the first hurdle the midlanders will be guaranteed at least one more chance against one of the other first round losers.
The Ulster county beat Longford in the first round of the inaugural Tailteann Cup in the 2022 thanks to a late goal in a close contest and were rampant in the group stage at Pearse Park last year when they cruised to a landslide 2-19 to 0-7 win.
That terrible result knocked Longford out and while Fermanagh (now managed by former Donegal star and boss Declan Bonner) won just one game (v Laois) in their relegation from Division 3 of the league this season, the standard was considerably higher in the defeats against Down, Westmeath, Wexford, Sligo, Clare and Limerick.
Although they suffered a comprehensive defeat (2-32 to 1-24) against a much superior Armagh outfit in the Ulster championship, they showed a fair amount of character in battling back to score a total of 1-20 in the second half.
Powerful full-forward Darragh McGurn was outstanding in registering the most impressive total of 1-12 (including five two-pointers) and the general opinion is that Fermanagh will probably prove too strong for Longford.