2023 Football Championship draw: Connacht big guns in same half | Tyrone paired with Monaghan
The draws for the 2023 Munster, Leinster, Connacht and Ulster Senior Football Championships have taken place. Mayo, Roscommon and Galway are all in one half of the Connacht SFC draw, while Tyrone will be up against Monaghan in Ulster
Sunday 16 October 2022 08:39, UK
The draw for the 2023 provincial championships has taken place.
Opportunity knocks for the lesser lights in Connacht, with one of Leitrim, Sligo, New York and London set to reach the Nestor Cup decider.
Kevin McStay's opening championship assignment in charge of Mayo will be against his former team Roscommon. All-Ireland finalists Galway await the winners in the semi-final.
In Ulster, Tyrone and Monaghan will face off in the quarter-final. In the last four, the victor could have the chance to exact revenge on Derry for their 2022 defeat, with the Anglo-Celt Cup holders opening their defence against Fermanagh.
Donegal will take on Down, with Cavan awaiting the winner of Armagh vs Antrim in the preliminary round.
In Leinster, Dublin and Kildare are set for a potential semi-final showdown.
The Dubs could face Wexford for the third year running in the Leinster quarter-final, with the Model County facing Laois for the right to take on the Sky Blues.
Meanwhile, Colm O'Rourke's Meath side will open against the winner of Longford-Offaly.
In Munster, Kerry will face the winners of Tipperary vs Waterford in the last four. Meanwhile, Limerick will be up against Cork or Clare.
With the new format for the All-Ireland Football Championship coming into effect in 2023, the provincial championships take on more significance. Regardless of league standing, any team that reaches a provincial final will be guaranteed their spot in the Sam Maguire Cup group stages.
2023 All-Ireland Championship: The new format explained
The National League and provincial championships will continue under the same formats as 2022.
Following their conclusion, 16 teams will proceed to the All-Ireland Championships, with the remainder entering the Tailteann Cup.
All provincial finalists, as well as the next eight teams in terms of National League ranking progress to the All-Ireland Championship round-robin stages, with four groups of four.
The four group winners will qualify for the All-Ireland quarter-finals, with the second-placed teams drawn against third-placed teams in preliminary quarter-finals.
The Tailteann Cup will follow a similar structure, with New York entering at the preliminary quarter-final stage.
