WITH such a packed weekend of football action, we need no introductory paragraph again this week. We cut straight to the chase.

The football championships in Cork continue to provide thrills and spills aplenty, with exciting games and close contests galore.

Six draws and a further nine games that were decided by less than a single score across the top five grades tells you how well matched the teams now are at their correct levels. And that’s not including the Carbery junior A championship, which had another four draws.

The volume of games means it’s impossible to give each grade the attention they deserve, but we do have a four-week gap now to give due consideration to each in the coming weeks.

Starting from the top down, the premier senior grade looks more evenly balanced than it has in several years. The big three have all dropped points in the first two games, even if Castlehaven’s draw with Clonakilty means they are still unbeaten. The other members of that group, St Finbarr’s and Nemo Rangers, did bounce back with decisive wins against Douglas and St Michael’s respectively, however there does not appear to be any clear favourite jumping out at present.

We had Clonakilty and Newcestown as the leaders of the chasing pack ahead of the weekend, and Clon’s performance against Castlehaven gives further credence to their prospects. That they are frustrated not to finally have taken Castlehaven’s scalp tells you that they have made progress already this season. Newcestown, on the other hand, had their colours lowered by their neighbours, Valley Rovers, and while we still don’t see the Innishannon men winning a county, not many will be queuing up to play them just now.

Valleys are one of only two teams to have claimed two wins from two in premier senior, with Carrigaline being the other. Remarkably, no team is yet guaranteed to progress to the knockout rounds, while Ballincollig are the only team that has no chance of progression.

St Michael’s and Mallow have also lost both games so far, but retain outside hopes of qualification. But in reality it looks like it will come down to two of those three teams to drop into the relegation play-off.

That means 11 out of 12 teams technically still have hopes of moving forward to the knockout stages, and it would take a brave man to try and call the six teams who will join Carbery. But I will attempt to do so in advance of the next round of games in September. Suffice to say, there are some superb contests to look forward to and the Cork club championships are a product that continues to produce.

The group-of-four format makes for superb entertainment across the board. The final round can’t come quickly enough for us football followers, and the same is true as we continue through the grades.

Carbery Rangers' Barry Kerr tries to get away from O'Donovan Rossa's Luca Harte during their SAFC clash in Union Hall. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

At senior A, the headline result was Newmarket taking down last year’s beaten finalists, the highly fancied Cill na Martra. The Duhallow men have two serious scoring forwards in Ryan O’Keefe and Cork footballer turned hurler Hugh O’Connor. Those two combined for 12 of Newmarket’s 15 points, including the three late two-pointers that saw them home. In the other game in the group, Carbery Rangers had a comfortable win over a Skibbereen side shorn of Kevin Davis.

Ross were without a handful of key players also, but Skibb without Davis are essentially rudderless in attack. In truth, aside from the opening 15 minutes when they had a decent go, Skibb were way off the mark. If Davis isn’t fit in four weeks either, and with Cill na Martra to come, Skibb could be looking at a second successive relegation play-off.

To show how unpredictable the grade is, that game was the only result I got correct in my predictions for senior A last weekend.

I tipped Kanturk who drew with Dohenys, while Béal Átha’n Ghaorthaidh slowed the Aghabullogue train with a four-point win in Macroom. Kilshannig really made me look foolish by dismantling Bishopstown by 18 points, while Éire Óg versus Clyda Rovers was postponed due to a tragic bereavement in Mourneabbey. Again, to show how well balanced the championship is, no team has yet qualified or been eliminated with one round to go, plus the re-fixed game mentioned above.

We have to get the premier intermediate grade to finally find our first team to have reached the knockout stages, as pre-season favourites Uibh Laoire continue to look ready to take another step up the Cork football ladder. Unfortunately, Bantry are in the opposite boat with no chance of progress and needing a result on the final day against Glanmire to eliminate the prospect of relegation.

Rockchapel, Kiskeam and Macroom are best placed of the rest to progress while only scoring difference separates all four teams in Group 3 with Nemo Rangers second team, Naomh Abán, Ballinora and Fermoy all on two points. Yet again, there will be huge excitement and confusion aplenty when the final round of games are played simultaneously on the second weekend of September.

In the lower intermediate grade, the picture is a little bit clearer with both Kilmurry and Adrigole assured of knockout football, while Glanworth cannot progress and look certainties for one relegation place. Unfortunately, Gabriel Rangers came up just short against Dromtarriffe and are the only other team yet to pick up a point after Bandon rescued a draw late on against Kildorrery.

Gabriels will need to take down the Barrs second team to avoid joining Glanworth and they will need to remedy their habit of conceding goals. Gabriels are well able to score themselves but the concession of seven goals in two games has cost them. Ilen Rovers easily disposed of Glanworth and will now have a winner-take-all contest against Buttevant. A host of other clubs, including Bandon, are still in the hunt for qualification.

At premier junior, Kinsale are through while northside duo St Vincent’s and Na Piarsaigh are eliminated. All nine other teams still have a chance of joining Kinsale, with Kilmacabea right in the hunt after a more than credible draw with 2024 runners-up Canovee. In a low-scoring contest which finished 0-10 apiece, the Kilmacs played the majority of the game without their primary scorer, Damien Gore.

Notably, goalkeeper Colin McCarthy accounted for six of the ten points and Leap will need Gore and the other forwards fit and firing against 2025 runners-up St Nick’s. A draw or a win will put Kilmacabea through but defeat will end their season.

Beyond that, a man would need an army of data analysts and some powerful AI technology to determine all the permutations across the board!

We have three more columns before the action recommences, and we will need them to cover even a small percentage of the games to come in any detail. For sure, the Carbery junior championships will get more focus next week when we have a little breathing space to do so.

All this football is superb, however it doesn’t make this job easy. A good complaint, nonetheless, as we are spoiled in Cork for club action and we shouldn’t take it for granted.

The hurling takes over now for a couple of weeks, but we won’t be short of football matters to discuss and look forward to.

Two rounds down, for the most part at least, the final round of games is as close as it gets to old-school championship football that you can get. We won’t wish the summer away but the football in September will be something to brighten the shorter evenings.