St Brigid's place fancied Tullamore in their sights

TULLAMORE'S form should earn them the mantle but there is a strong case for making St Brigid's the favourites for next Saturday's Intermediate Football Championship final in Tullamore.

Tullamore have been the best team in the championship so far. They coasted through their group, beating St Rynagh's, Walsh Island and Kilcormac-Killoughey with a scoring difference of +32 points and they looked good in their semi-final dismissal of Raheen, 2-14 to 0-9.

Tullamore's form, however, does come with a big caveat. They were definitely in the easiest of the two groups. St Rynagh's and Kilcormac-Killoughey never got going and while Walsh Island once again conducted their campaign with their best foot forward, they were still relying on a handful of elder statesmen.

In the semi-final, Raheen were missing their talisman, the injured Dylan Hyland and that meant that they were never going to take Tullamore out – even with Hyland on board, Tullamore would probably still have won but his absence meant that the result was effectively a foregone conclusion.

St Brigid's also topped their group to qualify direct for the semi-finals and have had a tougher path to the final. They beat Raheen and Edenderry but lost to Ferbane – this meant that them, Ferbane and Raheen tied on four points with scoring difference earning St Brigid's top spot.

It was just a way more competitive group, even if Edenderry were not at the races. St Brigid's have done serious work since their group campaign and their 1-12 to 0-6 semi-final win over Ferbane commanded the utmost of respect. They were very good that day, tearing Ferbane apart from the throw in and missing a handful of goal chances in the first half.

Considering that Ferbane were fancied and had a few senior players in their ranks, the extent of St Brigid's dominance, the ease with which they won was remarkable and there is a temptation to make them favourites after that performance.

We will resist, however, and suffice to say that they have a really good chance and a win for the Croghan men would scarcely register as an upset. It is a very delicately poised one and few will be putting big money on the outcome.

St Brigid's are very keen to get back up a grade and some exciting young footballers have emerged for them in recent years. One of those, Ben Kennedy is not long back after a horrific broken leg in a work accident over a year ago but he was firing on all cylinders against Ferbane, moving at pace and with intent. His display in the attack will have a big bearing on this final.

St Brigid's have a former county player in Cian Donoghue and him and Alan Scally are playing very well at midfield. They also have the option of moving Dan Molloy out here – Molloy is on the fringes of the Offaly senior football panel and will probably get an opportunity to join them this year.

The midfield battle will be fascinating. St Brigid's have a more experienced pairing, Tullamore are younger and more raw with Davin Keegan and Cillian Martin. Keegan was on the Offaly U20 football panel this year and while Martin made his name as an outstanding member of the Offaly minor hurling side that lost to Tipperary in the 2022 All-Ireland final, he also has the potential to be a very good, effective footballer who could play senior for Tullamore down the road if he pursues it.

A lot will be decided in the midfield zone as a tough war of attrition is likely to emerge. You would imagine it will be close to break even. St Brigid's have plenty of pace as well as an excellent long serving forward in Bobby Troy and as a unit, they bring a big work rate and intensity to the table.

Tullamore want to win this grade. With so many young players emerging, they are fully aware that their second team really should be in the second tier and they have focused on that.

This hasn't always been the case. They have often flattered to deceive while last year, they took a handful of players off this team for senior, some of whom barely featured as the senior campaign wore on. They haven't done that this year.

Beaten by Raheen in the semi-final last year, Pa Robbiliard, Ben Heffernan and Liam Dillane have gone from that team to senior but all have featured regularly and have played from the start.

Since the championships started, Tullamore haven't taken or been tempted to take one intermediate – in fact they were more likely to tell a player to run off an injury or bring one back on than use an intermediate who was only going to get a few minutes and see very little action after that.

They have been much more focused on this grade this year and they have a very formidable team. Mainly a young team, one of their key players is their oldest player, Shane Dooley. A long time dual club senior star, Dooley's experience and scoring has been pivotal to Tullamore's progress and St Brigid's will earmark him for special attention.

Dooley would love to win another medal at this grade. While his hurling exploits earned him national attention, he was also an excellent football forward and made a fine contribution as Tullamore won the senior football title in 2007 and 2013. He started off his football club career with an intermediate football medal in 2004 and was outstanding that year. We will leave it to Dooley to pen his own retirement from club football and he has an obvious affection for the game but if he decides to concentrate on hurling for his last year or so, wouldn't it be a very nice way to end his football career with a second intermediate medal?

They have a lot of other very good players. Donncha Keoghan, Jack Daly, Jack Maher and Jay Sheerin are among the players who have played underage for Offaly in recent years. They are not unbeatable and they are well capable of having a bad day but they are playing well and moving well.

Traditionally we are moving into St Brigid's time of year, though they have a lighter younger team now than some of their past title winners and heavy underfoot conditions won't suit them any more than Tullamore.

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It is a game to look forward to and it will make compelling viewing. St Brigid's have a terrific chance and you can be fairly sure of them performing. There is more doubts about Tullamore but their form has been convincing this year and they can edge it.

Verdict – Tullamore.