Intermediate Championship favourites Erne Gaels will get their campaign under way on Sunday when they take on Maguiresbridge in Ederney.

The Belleek men dropped down from Senior last year but have enjoyed a strong Division One campaign, and Manager Seamus Ryder says that the championship is the main priority for them this year, and that their complete focus since the end of the league has been on Maguiresbridge – a side who reached the final of last year’s competition.

“It’s all on the day,” said Ryder. “This has been the main priority for us this year, and for the last four or five weeks we have been focusing on Maguiresbridge, and Maguiresbridge only.

“We won’t be underestimating them or reading anything into the league; they were in the final last year and they will have the experience from that.”

And Ryder is expecting it to be an open game between two sides who have the ability to score freely.

“They seem to be a high-scoring side, they are well fit to score, and I would say that it will be a good enough game for the neutrals.

“Look, they will be organised, and we will have to contain their main men,” he added.

Ryder has a strong squad to call on with the likes of Ultan Kelm, Brian Mullin, Tommy McCaffrey, Barry McCann and Shane Rooney, and he is pleased to report no injury concerns ahead of the game.

“We have a clean bill of health; we had a few niggles but I would expect them to be all cleared up and hopefully we have a full squad to select from on Sunday,” he commented.

Maguiresbridge boss Keith Reilly acknowledges that Erne Gaels are favourites for the title, and he feels that means the pressure is off his side.

‘Competitive’

““That’s an honest enough assessment of it. The Intermediate championship is quite competitive anyway, but Belleek having dropped down from the Senior Championship last year, and finishing quite high in Division One, I suppose a neutral would have them as favourites for the Championship, let alone the game against ourselves.

“Listen, the way we look at it, the pressure is probably all on Belleek and we will be coming in under the radar.

“We have had an indifferent league form, as such, but player availability has dictated that for large reasons.”

Despite the underdog tag, Reilly believes his side can put it up to anybody when it comes to Championship football.

“We are always confident in a one-off game. Players always find that wee bit extra in them, albeit we have been quite hindered with availability this year.

“But we will give it our best shot on the day and if every player raises their game from where we have been, going into the final quarter, we will be there or thereabouts.”

Maguiresbridge were defeated finalists in last year’s competition but Reilly believes those experiences will have helped his squad going into this year’s Championship.

“A lot of the games boys played in last year, they were all quite tight affairs, and they definitely got stronger throughout it.

“Coming up against a quite fancied Enniskillen team in the final was probably one step too far, but the boys have learnt lessons from that and tried to correct a few things that have went wrong, and going into the game against Belleek hopefully we are there or thereabouts.”