Ballaghaderreen v Charlestown - Ballaghdereen
Mayo Gaels v Balla - Balla
Aghamore Gaa v Castlebar - Aghamore
Garrymore v Crossmolina - Crossmolina
Breaffy v Westport - Breaffy
Claremorris v Bellmullet - Claremorris

When are times being announced or did i miss it

It's a bit of a joke no Intermediate games being shown this weekend. What is the justification for showing a relegation semi-final ahead of a couple of the quarter finals? Especially as there are two extremely tasty games with loads of Mayo players involved. If the county board think so little of intermediate football why are the ticket prices the same as the senior ones?

@FreeTheEastBank: For the QF/playoff games?

Times/dates/pairings were announced fairly quickly the Sunday evening the R3 games were played.

You can find all the times here on the Fixtures page (or on most of Mayo GAA's social media channels if you go back a bit over a week):

https://www.mft.ie/fixtures-latest/

MM - handle changed to MM as Mayo Mick handle has been in use here by someone else for several years. Please either use the MM handle or pick a new one not already in use by someone else.

The relegation game is a stand alone Friday fixture hence why its been shown its not that hard to understand.

It's a relegation semi final with two poor senior teams. Realistically, if the Cliffords and Fossa were in Mayo they would be getting zero air time too.

@MM

None of the four intermediate quarter final venues have floodlights to play the game on Friday night. That has 100% influenced the county board's decision to play the Mayo Gaels vs Balla game on Friday night. Senior matches have always taken precedence over Intermediate/Junior. If you're playing at the top level you get that luxury.

The only other realistic contender for a game under lights was Aghamore vs Castlebar, and I'm presuming the CB wanted that game for a primetime Saturday slot instead of Friday night. The Garrymore match is also under lights but that is the showpiece event on Saturday evening.

All that being said, whats the alternative on Friday night? Show no match? The Mayo Gaels Balla game is a local derby and will attract a big crowd for sure. Would you rather the county board didnt livestream the game?

We had no Friday night game in the quarter final round last year, remember that.

Also, that Fossa comment makes no sense. Intermediate semi finals and finals are always livestreamed, and I'm sure they will be shown on MayoGAATV again this year, just like Fossa's final last weekend was shown.

@OntheFence
Every single intermediate match in Kerry has been shown on Clubber this year. I think its a fair point to say that in a really competitive championship, to only have two intermediate matches shown before the semi-final stage is a bit of a joke. They were able to show two matches at the same time last weekend yet no effort made to show them this weekend? If Senior takes such precedence why are ticket prices the same?

Does anyone know the dates for the finals? I'm trying to book the time off work and travel down for the weekend they're on. I'm assuming it'll be the 17th/18th of October if it's 2 week break to the semi final and then finals, but does anyone know for sure?

@MM

That is a different argument altogether. If your problem is with a lack of games being shown, then lead with that. Complaining about one match being shown over another isnt going to solve the overarching issue that you have with only a handful of games being shown each week. Which intermediate match would you rather take the place of Balla vs Mayo Gaels?

I'm not privy to the conversations that Clubber TV or Streamsport have with the County Board, but as it is usually the case with these things, I'm sure that the reason we only get a handful of games each weekend is down to money. I would love to see all games streamed but its probably a numbers game as to why we dont have that service.

Seán. Good luck trying to find that out. I work weekends and have given up trying to find out over the years.

I remember one year ringing Machale park and being told " that information will become available in its own good time "

Intermediate Predictions
Parke
Kiltane
Ballyhanuis
Ardnaree

Parke to win it out 4 Mayo under 20 forwards would make any senior team plus alot of players who have came through saint gerards collages A team

Who is the 4 mayo u 20 players on parke team

I was looking at the 20 players that saw game time with Mayo in the All Ireland final with regards as to how they got on in the club championship. Considering all the celebrations and bringing Sam to various destinations throughout the county, they have had a very busy few weeks. And for all bar 3 of them, their football season hasn’t finished yet. By my reckoning 14 of them are involved in quarter final action this weekend, 13 in senior and Jack Coyne for Ballyhaunis in the intermediate. I am including Daragh Beirne in that even though he hasn’t played any club championship yet. There are also 3 lads involved in relegation playoffs, 2 in senior and Tommy Conroy for The Neale in the intermediate. There is a good chance some of them will be in direct opposition to each other. David McBrien and Paul Towey have been busy bringing Sam around to various venues in east Mayo. What’s the chances of them facing off against each other at the weekend. And what about the 2 young guns in the Garrymore/Crossmolina match. McGreal wasn’t afraid to take on Paudi Clifford in the All Ireland final. Will he be the man to go after Kobe at the weekend. Lots to look forward to.

@Tedtoal: Parke would have Colm Lynch (played all his 20s minutes at wing back this year, but has been playing inside at 14 for Parke with 2-1-7 scored from play) ['26], Dara Neary ['26], Cathal Keaveney ['25] (played most his underage football as a forward around 11 but tending to be used around half-back for Parke) & Darragh Reilly ['24] that saw county U20 minutes in relatively recent years.

Along with Evan Walsh who'll likely see some this coming year (I'd imagine he and/or Joe Forry wouldn't have been far away from last years panel after strong years for Geralds in the PPS but serious competition for places pushed lots of talented lads like that just outside the panel).

The alternative is to stagger the fixtures, having Senior one week and the intermediate /Junior the following week. It would also mean a smaller pool of quality referees.

@onthefence
I think if they commit to showing 5 games on a weekend and one is a relegation semi-final it's fair to ask why at least one intermediate game isn't being shown.

I personally think the Moy Davitts/Parke game will be a better match than the Balla/Mayo Gaels game. And there was a number of years before the new rules game in when the intermediate championship was far more exciting, attacking and more compelling than the senior which was mired in defensive tactics.

If you look at what Crossmolina have done and even Kilmeena beating Westport it's a fair argument that the top of intermediate is a higher quality than the bottom of senior

MM - You are just ignoring that Balla/Mayo Gaels is a standalone fixture on Friday night and that's why they are showing it, if Moy Davitts/Parke was a standalone fixture on Friday night i am sure they would show it.

@MM

As @Moy2Pointer has pointed out already, you're ignoring the fact that the main reason why the Balla vs Mayo Gaels game is being shown on Friday night is because its a game that can be played under lights in a neutral venue.

Foxford has no lights to play the match on the Friday night. Neither does any of the 4 intermediate hosts, so Friday night games for them are not an option. Mayo GAA clearly wanted to have a Friday night game for streaming, so they're showing the senior relegation match.

As for the top of intermediate/bottom of senior comment, that's debatable. It's never a good sign to the strength of intermediate when Kilmeena were able to bounce straight back up last year. I think that at the moment the bottom of senior is as strong if not stronger than the top of intermediate. Whichever team gets relegated this year will be one of the strongest teams in Intermediate next year, without a doubt.

Aghamore v Mitchels - Aghamore
Garrymore v Crossmolina - Crossmolina
Breaffy v Westport - Westport
Claremorris v Belmullet - Claremorris
Mayo Gaels v Balla - Mayo Gaels
Charlestown v Ballaghaderreen - Ballagh

Ardnaree v Ballinrobe - Ardnaree
Ballyhaunis v Davitts - Davitts
Kiltane v Islandeady - Kiltane
Moy Davitts v Parke - Moy Davitts
The Neale v Louisburgh - The Neale
Cill Chomain v Kiltimagh - Kiltimagh

Few predictions for the weekend. I can see yet another Garrymore defeat at home in the quarter-final after a great group stage. It's happened before and with the quality Crossmolina have across the board I can see it happening again, although I dont expect it to be an absolute collapse like against Knockmore a few years back. I also think Westport have a kick in them and if it's ever going to come it'll be away from home against Breaffy, if they cant get themselves up and going for that one they are in serious trouble.

In the Intermediate, every team (except Islandeady) can realistically believe they have a chance of winning the title this year but I still find it hard to look past Moy Davitts. They have the experience that other teams don't in their back pocket and top quality all across the pitch. Parke will be a tough one for them on Sunday, especially with the quality Parke have in the likes of Keaveney, Lynch and Matthew Kelly at wing-back but even without Reape on the pitch I would expect Moy Davitts to come through especially if Conor Reid can keep up his recent player of the year level form.

@Sean: The semi-finals are in two weeks after the quarter finals and then the Intermediate final is 2 weeks later but the senior final is three weeks after the semis. Master fixture list was circulated back at the start of the year and they havnt deviated from it since. I think it's based on when the county champions would be out in provincial action and not leaving too big a gap between county final and Connaught games

You're both ignoring my point that two games were shown at the same time in the 3rd round of matches yet they're choosing not to do this at the weekend. It's a relegation semi final, not even a designated senior championship match.
@on the fence. What about the previous 13 years when no senior team who got relegated came straight back up. By your logic, that must mean the intermediate championship has been at an incredible standard over the past decade

MM,
Totally agree with you.
There are two intermediate games there that will produce fireworks
Ballyhaunis v Davitts
Moy Davitts v Parke

A load of good footballers on display. It's a shame that there will be two teams there that won't get TV time..

MM - You do understand the Ball v Gaels game is on tv because it’s being played at a venue that has lights. There are no lights in Foxford so it’s not a case they are showing the senior relegation play off instead of the Moy Davitts game.

@ MM. you are talking about the two of the finalists of division 2 league this year in Balla & mayo gaels. both paying division 1 in 2027.

@MM

You're point in your last reply said that (and this is a direct quote):

"I personally think the Moy Davitts/Parke game will be a better match than the Balla/Mayo Gaels game. "

That has nothing to do with showing 2 games at once, or showing the senior game on Friday night. MayoGAATV did that last week as the two games had a direct bearing on the outcome of the group, with coverage from either game being shown on splitscreen at times. They can do it yes, but they've made a decision to not do it for one reason or another.

The decision to not show 2 games at the same time has absolutely zero to do with showing the senior relegation match, which is something that you appear to have taken serious issue with. The wanted a Friday night game, Ardnaree, Foxford, Ballyhaunis and Bangor all dont have lights. What part here is hard to understand?

As for your comments about intermediate over the past 13 years, you've got it backwards in my opinion.
If no relegated team was able to bounce straight back up in the previous 13 years, that pointed to the fact that it was easier to win 1 game to stay up than win 5/6 games to get promoted. The 1 up /1 down system meant that some teams were able to stay senior past their sell by date because there was a weaker team below them. Look at some of the teams who have been relegated recently:

The Neale
Davitts
Kiltane
Moy Davitts
Hollymount/Carramore
Ballinrobe
Crossmolina

and so on.

All of those teams have struggled at some point after getting relegated. They've all required a significant rebuild and the reality of it is that for a few years there, the bottom 3/4 teams in senior were weaker than the top 3/4 in intermediate. Kilmeena were relegated in their first year up because the relegation in 2024 was seriously competitive. Belmullet beat them in the final in 2024 and were back in the quarter final less than a year later (and back in the quarter final again this year). That points to the bottom end of senior being at a high standard at the moment.

The bottom end of senior was weak for 6-8 years. That is not the case at the moment. Kilmeena bouncing straight back up is testament to that. Balla, Mayo Gaels and Ballaghaderreen are all in relegation yet all 3 beat Moy Davitts in the league this year (and Moy Davitts are the people's favourites to go up). Davitts lost against 2 of those 3 and drew with Ballaghaderreen. Hollymount Carramore lost vs all 3. Parke were the only team to get a win vs any of them. Ballinrobe lost vs Balla and Mayo Gaels but drew vs Ballaghaderreen. Out of 15 matches listed there against senior opposition, this was how the intermediate teams fared:

W2 D3 L10

Balla lost to the 3 in a row county champions by 3 points. Mayo Gaels drew with Crossmolina. Charlestown had a goal shot to level the game vs group toppers Claremorris at the death which would have kept them out of relegation. Ballaghaderreen were tipped to get out of their group but finished bottom of the 'Group Of Death' which Knockmore failed to qualify out of also. Do these sound like teams that are struggling in senior? Or maybe, just maybe, the overall standard of senior from top to bottom is tight?