The GAA have made a number of changes to the fixture calendar for the 2021 season including regional divisions in the National Football League as well as the introduction of the Tailteann Cup for Division Three and Division Four clubs who don’t reach their provincial finals.
A split season will see inter-county action take place first followed by the club season which will begin in July.
Ryan McMenamin’s Fermanagh side will play in Division Three North in the National Football League with fellow Ulster sides Derry and Cavan along with Longford making up the four team section.
Senior inter-county training is not permitted to start until January 15 with challenge games allowed from the start of February while their will be no McKenna Cup in 2021.
The league is scheduled to commence on the weekend of February 27-28 and will be completed on April 3-4. The sides will play each other once with two homes and an away game or vice versa based on the draw by CCCC. The top two teams in each group will qualify for the league semi-final followed by the league final while the bottom two in each divisional group will go into the relegation semi-finals with the two losers relegated to Division Four.
The Ulster Championship is pencilled in to start on the weekend of April 16-17 with the final scheduled for May 29-30.
If Fermanagh don’t secure promotion from Division Three then they will have to reach the Ulster final if they are to avoid playing in the Tailteann Cup in 2021 as the two Tier Championship gets underway.
The Tailteann Cup is to commence on May 22-23 with the semi-finals to be played as a double header in Croke Park on Sunday June 6 and the final to be the curtain raiser to the All Ireland Hurling semi-final on June 26-27.
The All Ireland Senior Football Final will take place on July 17-18.
In underage inter-county competitions, the U20 Championship will be played over six weekends between March 27 and the All Ireland final on the weekend of May 1/2. The minor window will run from March 20/21 through to May 22/23.
In hurling, Fermanagh are in Division Three B along with Leitrim, Louth, Cavan and Lancashire. The league will run from February 27-28 through to finals weekend on April 10-11. The top two in each division will contest the league final.
Joe Baldwin’s side will then compete in the Lory Meagher Cup which will include Monaghan, Longford, Louth, Cavan and Lancashire.
The six teams will be split into two groups of three which each side playing a home and an away game. The top two in each will progress to the semi-finals. The final is fixed for the weekend of May 29-30.
Clubs will then get a free run from July 25 with Championships expected to be completed by October 24. The provincial club championship window is from October 16 to November 28 with All Ireland Club semi-finals to take place in December with the All Ireland Club finals to be played in January 2022.
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