By Shaun Casey

Antrim

Aghagallon2-13

Ahoghill1-17

It’s only a few short years ago that Aghagallon were contesting Antrim county finals and looked like the team that were best placed to end Cargin’s rein in the Saffron County. They lost back-to-back deciders, to Creggan in 2021 and Cargin in 2022, and haven’t really pushed on since. Still, the opening round of this year’s championship was expected to go their way as they hosted an Ahoghill side that had finished at the bottom of the Division One league table with just three wins from 15 outings. But the visiting side upset the odds to win by the minimum of margins, with a late James O’Connell score sealing the victory.

Armagh

Armagh Harps0-22
Carrickcruppen2-18

Before a ball was kicked in round two of the Armagh SFC, there wouldn’t have been too many that gave Carrickcruppen a hope. They’d just lost to county champions Clann Éireann by 23-points in the opening round, and with an away day date with 2017 winners Harps pencilled in, it looked likely that another defeat was on the cards. That narrative only increased when the home side pulled ten clear at one stage, but ‘Cruppen, who won the Intermediate Championship last season, clawed their way back, with the help of goals from Eoin Kane and Eoin Woods along with two-pointers through Richard Keenan and Blaine Hughes to pull off the most unlikely of comebacks.

Cavan

Ramor United6-12
Arva1-11

In the province of Ulster, Arva have been one of the feelgood fairytale stories of the last two years. They claimed the Junior All-Ireland title in 2023, competed for an Intermediate Ulster in 2024 and in 2025 they are up and competing in the Cavan Senior Championship. They opened their account with a fine win over Killygarry but reality hit hard in round two when they came up against one of the favourites for the throne. Arva were without a few key men, but Ramor United showed absolutely no mercy and they delivered a huge performance to go two from two and send out a warning shot to the rest of the county.

Derry

Dungiven2-15
Newbridge1-11

Newbridge’s title defence was struck a surprising blow in the opening round of the Derry Championship when they suffered a seven-point defeat at the hands of Dungiven. Niall McGonagle was the main attacking threat on the day for the victors, and he delivered a superb performance, accounting for 1-8 of Dungiven’s final tally, while Joe Dillon also rattled the back of the net. The prize for Dungiven’s victory is a shot at 2024 All-Ireland club champions Glen and they’ll be keen to deliver another big display and record a second shock while Newbridge take on Swatragh, with the losers of the contest dropping out of the competition and seeing their season come to an abrupt end.

Down

Mayobridge1-10
Drumgath0-14

Mayobridge secured their Division One status in the league while Drumgath, who recently changed their manager with MD McPolin taking over the hotseat, were relegated to Division Three for the 2026 season. So, entering the opening round of the Down Senior Championship last weekend, few would have expected them to really cause Mayobridge any bother but as it turned out, they did more than that. It’s been years since the two neighbours faced off in the Senior Championship and it’s one that Mayobridge will want to quickly wipe from their memories while for Drumgath and match-winning hero Packie Downey, this triumph will be spoken about for years to come.

Donegal

Kilcar2-17
Downings3-16

This round two result was a real surprise in Donegal, especially given how both sides started their campaigns on the opening day. Kilcar downed reigning champions St Eunan’s 0-16 to 0-13, although the county champs were admittedly without a number of star men. Downings were one-point losers against last year’s beaten finalists Dungloe and weren’t given much of a chance heading to Kilcar the following weekend. The home side led by two-points at one stage in the second half but were eventually reeled back in by Downings, who then snatched victory deep into injury time, thanks to a two-pointer from the boot of Ronan Gallagher.

Monaghan

Inniskeen3-17
Ballybay1-12

Given where these two clubs have been over the last few years, such a heavy margin of victory for Inniskeen certainly caught the eye. Digging a little deeper to see the league form of Ballybay, winners of the Monaghan Senior Championship as recently as 2022, then things become a little clearer. Ryan Mellon’s men have been struggling with injuries to the likes of Dessie Ward and Drew Wylie, but their fall in a short few years has been astonishing. Inniskeen look good under John McEntee this season and they are aiming to get back to a county final having last competed on the biggest day of the season two years ago, losing out to Scotstown.