We’ll find out the answer to that question over the next two months as the Cormac Leonard Commercials Armagh Intermediate Football Championship takes place. Keady, Whitecross, Forkhill, Collegeland Keady made a strong start to their Division 2A campaign, but finished on a low note, having lost their last three games and missed out on a top two spot. However, they’ll still be expected to come out on top in this group. Tomas Galvin – who also plays soccer for Irish Cup champions Dungannon Swifts – has been a stand-out performer in recent seasons. Whitecross endured a difficult league campaign, winning just once in 14 games. However, they have an exciting young core group of players such as Adam Reavey and Kian Rigley, as well as key forward Aidan Finnegan, and will be hoping to still be in the mix come the later rounds of the Championship. Forkhill are riding a momentum high, after they secured back-to-back league promotions by finishing second in Division 2B. County veterans Stephen Sheridan and Jemar Hall are still the headline names in their team, but Armagh U20 forward Conall McGeough is an exciting prospect and caught the eye in the Junior Championship last year. For Collegeland, having finished bottom of Division 2B with no wins, the 2024 Junior Champions look to be the weakest team in the competition. Tullysaran, Shane O’Neill’s, Wolfe Tones, Clann Eireann II Tullysaran achieved club history by winning the Division 2A title – which means that in 2026 they will be playing Senior football for the first time ever, since they were formed 136 years ago. Mark McKeever was outstanding in last year’s Championship and continued his electric form throughout the league campaign. In the match which clinched the title, a win over Ballymacnab, he hit 0-11. He’s a strong contender to be the top scorer in the Intermediate Championship. It has been a tough 2025 for Shane O’Neill’s as they were relegated down to Division 2B, but the 2022 Intermediate champions will still expect to be in contention for the crown this year. They’re led by Armagh county stars Connaire Mackin and Greg McCabe, whilst forwards Ruairi O’Brien and Paul O’Rourke can cause problems for any side. Semi-finalists in 2024, Wolfe Tones will be difficult opposition for any team. However, they once again had a frustrating finish to their league campaign. For the second straight year, they missed out on promotion from Division 2B, on this occasion losing out at home to champions Derrynoose on the final day. Clann Eireann II were the surprise story of the 2024 Intermediate Championship, as they went all the way to the semi-finals and defeated competition favourites Pearse Ogs in the last eight. They may have been relegated from Division 2B this season, but the management teams of Tullysaran, Shane O’Neill’s and Wolfe Tones won’t be taking them lightly by any stretch. St Paul’s, Belleek, Grange, Annaghmore With Andrew Murnin leading the charge, St Paul’s are hopeful that 2025 will finally be the year that they get over the line, having lost the Intermediate Championship final in 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. With Eoin McConville also in the forward line, the Lurgan men have enough firepower to beat any team at this level. Having been promoted from Division 2B last year, Belleek achieved their target of staying up in Division 2A this season. Midfielder Callum O’Neill is enjoying the best season of his career to date, and with wins over Tullysaran, Shane O’Neill’s and Keady during the league, they won’t fear anyone. Grange have been on a slide in recent seasons, having slipped from playing Senior football in 2023 to finishing mid-table in Division 2B this year. However, they have an ace in the pack in the form of Ethan Rafferty, and if he finds form, they can pick up results throughout the Championship. Annaghmore are the strongest of all the Pot 4 teams based on league form, as they finished just one spot below Grange. They boast a county player of their own Tomas McCormack, who enjoyed a breakout year in the orange and white this season. Sarsfields, Ballymacnab, Derrynoose, Tir na nOg Sarsfields and Ballymacnab were Senior teams last year, and they collide in what will be a mouth-watering meeting in Group D. The McGeown’s, Eamon and Paul, remain central to the Sarsfields attack, whilst nippy forward Michael Stevenson pulls the strings. Famed for their good home record, the High Moss men are expected to be right amongst the top contenders. Ballymacnab have one of the best players in Ireland in Rory Grugan, however how much he features remains to be seen as he nurses an injury. It’s understood that he may play some part in their campaign if they reach the later stages, but can they do that without him? Pressure will fall on the shoulders of Kieran Hughes to be the main score-getter. Derrynoose will be full of confidence of taking a scalp – as they did in knocking out Shane O’Neill’s last summer – after they won the Division 2B league. Tir na nOg, like Ballymacnab, can lay claim to one of the best players in Ireland, with Oisin Conaty representing the club. However, it is understood that he intends to go travelling and won’t feature during the Championship. It’ll be tough for the Portadown men to make much headway in the Championship without their talisman, but they acheived their primary objective for 2025, by staying up in Division 2B.