SATURDAY 15 FEBRUARY
Allianz FL Division 1
Derry v Galway, Celtic Park, 5pm
Kerry v Dublin, Austin Stack Park, 7.30pm
Allianz FL Division 2
Cork v Westmeath, SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, 5pm
Down v Meath, Páirc Esler, 6pm
Allianz FL Division 4
Waterford v Tipperary, Fraher Field, 6.30pm
Wexford v Carlow, Chadwicks Wexford Park, 7pm
SUNDAY 16 FEBRUARY
Allianz FL Division 1
Mayo v Tyrone, Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, 1.45pm
Donegal v Armagh, MacCumhaill Park, 3.45pm
Allianz FL Division 2
Cavan v Louth, Kingspan Breffni, 2pm
Roscommon v Monaghan, King & Moffatt Dr Hyde Park, 2pm
Allianz FL Division 3
Laois v Sligo, Laois Hire O'Moore Park, 1pm
Clare v Fermanagh, Cusack Park, Ennis 1.30pm
Leitrim v Kildare, Ballinamore, 2pm
Offaly v Antrim, Glenisk O'Connor Park, 2pm
Allianz FL Division 4
London v Limerick, McGovern Park, Ruislip 12,30pm
Wicklow v Longford, Echelon Park, Aughrim 2pm
ONLINE
Live blogs each day on RTÉ Sport Online and RTÉ News app.
RADIO
Live commentaries and updates on RTÉ Radio 1's Saturday Sport and Sunday Sport.
TV
On Saturday there will be live coverage of Kerry v Dublin on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 7.20pm, with another Division 1 clash - Derry v Galway - on TG4 from 5pm.
Sunday sees a live double bill on TG4 from 1.15pm, featuring Mayo v Tyrone and Donegal v Armagh, while Roscommon v Monaghan (2pm) in Division 2 is live on TG4 App, followed by a deferred showing on TG4 from 5.35pm.
Highlights from the weekend on Allianz League Sunday from 9.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player.
WEATHER
Saturday: It will start off mainly dry. Scattered outbreaks of rain and drizzle will spread northwards through the day. Highest temperatures of 6 to 10 degrees with mostly moderate southeast winds, mildest in the southwest.
Sunday: It will continue mostly cloudy with rain and drizzle mainly affecting the northeast and the southwest. Some drier, brighter intervals elsewhere. Highest temperatures of 5 to 9 degrees, highest in the southwest with moderate, occasionally fresh southeast winds. For more go to met.ie.
Rules positivity....and a few quibbles
And so all have had the opportunity to really familiarise themselves with the new rules. Roscommon v Down in Round 1 and then Derry v Kerry a week later in the top tier were games that you stood back and said "Wow". Monaghan have chalked up 4-49 in their Division 2 campaign so far, while Laois (3-20), admittedly against a poor Leitrim outfit and Wicklow hitting 3-17 in the win over Waterford, was further evidence of the game moving more freely, resulting in a lot more scores. The chance to kick two-pointers no doubt helping in that regard.
Ryan McHugh feels the new playing rules are "helping the game" and that players have now more "freedom" to express yourself on the pitch #rtegaa
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) February 9, 2025
📺 Watch Allianz League Sunday on @RTE2 & @RTEplayer pic.twitter.com/B4NSnwSZBz
If this is the new, improved Gaelic football, then Jim Gavin and the rest of his merry men in the FRC should be given thanks. Perhaps, it's not time to yet to genuflect before them and kiss the ring; Jim and the lads are too busy analysing the data, in any event.
Gauging what others are saying beyond the rooms and corridors occupied by the FRC, there is, in the main, a view that most of football's new world order is working, though how the '12v11' could play out over time would seem to be a cause for concern.
Could it lead to sides holding on to possession for even longer than we are seeing presently? The handing back of the fall after a foul is committed is a bit "unnatural" so said 2024 Player of the Year Paul Conroy and fellow midfielder, Kerry's Diarmuid O'Connor, when speaking recently to RTÉ Sport.
Should two-pointer scores be only from play? Is the award for a free-kick too punitive? Is Jim McGuinness right in calling for an extra sub?.
We'll await to see what the composition of the new rules will look like come the end of the league and how that will impact championship season.
Division 1
We're only two games in but Galway can be happy with what they have produced so far. Armagh, in the opening round was a bit of an arm wrestle, but there was a lot more to like in the way they dismantled Mayo the last day.
Shane Walsh delivered a player of the match performance, shooting nine points, including four two-pointers as he made the most of the 40m-arc rule enhancement. His colleague in the Galway attack, Cillian Ó'Curraoin, did likewise as he landed three two-point frees. In the end, the Tribes were ten-point winners, the widest margin over their rivals since 1983.
There is a sense that the team means business and every day that passes is a day further on from the heartache of last July.
Daniel O'Flaherty at corner-back and Sam O'Neill at the other end of the field are amongst those who have stood out so far, while Joyce will hope to get more game time out of Rob Finnerty and Cian Hernon. The aforementioned are listed amongst the substitutes for the trip to Celtic Park.
Derry certainly played their part in that thriller with the Kingdom on 2 February but will be disappointed that they conceded two goals at the death to relinquish a lead they held for most of the game. Still, Paddy Tally's men were much improved from their below-par effort against Tyrone.
That said, they still have no points on the board, with Tally's side now facing opposition, whom he feels are well suited to playing within the parameters of the new rules. The Oak Leaf boss praised Galway's "free-flowing football DNA", when speaking to local media during the week, adding that "they have they have really taken advantage of the two-point scoring arc, the speed of the ball, the quick transfer, plus they are athletic."
Donncha Gilmore's shoulder injury, while playing for UCD in the Sigerson Cup, is another defensive blow for Derry, with Conor McCluskey, Padraig McGrogan and Gareth McKinless also on the absent list.
It was sloppiness at the back that cost the Ulsterman late on against Kerry, all the more galling as there was much to admire in how they chalked up 1-24 in advance of that collapse.
DIVISION 1 TABLE
Expect another high-scoring, dare one say it, thriller, on Foyleside.
And so to Tralee and the meeting of Kerry v Dublin. A storied rivalry with added poignancy in the week that Paddy Cullen died.
The common denominator here is that both have suffered defeats at the hands of Donegal. Dublin started well in Ballybofey, with Killian McGinnis, Colm Basquel, Seán Bugler and Ciarán Kilkenny all impressing but could not sustain the effort in the second period.
In what is generally viewed as a period of transition for the Dubs, new faces like Luke Breathnach and Sean Lowry were introduced at MacCumhaill Park and did not look out of place.
'The new rules will suit the likes of that type of player' - @tomas5ky on townie forwards and the Geaneys beating Derry #RTEgaa
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) February 2, 2025
📺 Watch League Sunday on RTÉ2 & RTÉplayer pic.twitter.com/nbIIPDIH8A
Kerry hit five goals against Derry, with Tomás Ó Sé heaping praise on the An Daingean/Geaney contribution and in particular how quickly the ball got transitioned from a tight corner in defence to a position where the Green and Gold made a telling mark on the scoreboard.
Against Jim McGuinness' side, goals were harder to come by, scoring only one. Diarmuid O'Connor's fisted effort cut the Donegal lead to a point but it was not a cue for the hosts to push on in Killarney. Donegal rallied to win by two and, if truth be told, were deserving winners.
Jack O'Connor was disappointed that Kerry did not get something from their #allianzfootballleague Division 1 clash with Donegal, believing that the side played better than they did against Derry last weekend #thesundaygame #rtegaa #kerrygaa pic.twitter.com/KW87pgMPtg
— RTÉ GAA (@RTEgaa) February 8, 2025
Mike Breen, Ruairi Murphy and Cathal Ó Beaglaíoch were some of the new faces introduced by Jack O'Connor, with the manager admitting to RTÉ Sport afterwards that "Donegal were a fair bit sharper than us".
Mayo are pointless after two games and welcome Tyrone to MacHale Park. More than a few words expressed since the loss to Galway about the wellbeing of the Green and Red. They may not be pressing the alarm bells just yet out west, in that a few new names are being introduced, while more established faces are still to come back. And then you have the likes of Cillian O'Connor and Pádraig O'Hora who have stepped away for a year.
All that aside, McStay's men got a bit of a second-half hiding from Galway, their brittleness at the back all too apparent. And Tyrone have the forwards that could make life even more uncomfortable for those entrusted with minding the Mayo house.
Pressure on Mayo to kickstart their year - Tomás Ó Sé
At the other end of the pitch, only two two-pointers have been chalked up so far.
Tyrone finished strongly against Armagh to leave themselves seven adrift at the finish. The Canavan brothers are expected to return for the trip to Castlebar. A welcome boost for a Red Hand outfit who are not short of potential under Malachy O'Rourke's stewardship.
A nice rivalry is building up between Donegal and Armagh and their clash in Ballybofey is sure to be one of the games of the weekend.
Jimmy's men did enough to keep Kerry at bay in Killarney, kicking a respectable 0-23, with a good spread of scorers on view. Paddy McBrearty and Jamie Brennan impressed when they were introduced. Overall, it was an improvement on the somewhat functional win over the Dubs.
Armagh also went up a notch when accounting for Tyrone, realising, perhaps that the new rules were now in play. They let the ball do the work, while also counter-attacking at pace. It was a joy to watch. Andrew Murnin caught the eye.
In-form Armagh can sneak win in battle of old foes
Will we see such free-flowing fare by the banks of the Finn? Maybe not. It's a fourth meeting in 12 months between this pair: Ulster's top two. And they could clash again in another provincial decider in May.
Division 2
All eyes here will be on the clash of Roscommon and Monaghan at the Hyde. Both are unbeaten so far and are adapting well to the FRC changes.
Diarmuid Murtagh and his brother Ciaráin, now back helping the Rossies cause, combined brilliantly to notch up 0-10 between them as Louth were overcome the last day. Donie Smith and Daire Cregg also played their part in attack, with Cian McKeown and Ben O'Carroll other options in a Roscommon front line that is well stacked with potential.
Division 2 table
Concerns about their defence have been raised, though a real examination of their rearguard won't come until a likely Connacht semi-final date with Galway. For now, the Primrose and Blue looked primed for a return to the top flight.
Monaghan made it two from two when defeating Westmeath by eight points.
Despite starting slowly in both halves, Gabriel Bannigan's Monaghan led for the majority of the match, spurred on by a sparkling performance from wing-back Conor McCarthy, who kicked seven points from play. David Garland and Stephen Mooney again showed their worth in attack, kicking 0-13 between them.
Westmeath and Cavan have nothing to show on the table so far. The Midlanders head to Cork, while the Breffni host Louth.
Down and Meath clash in Newry.
Division 3
Favourites Kildare were good value for their six-point win over Sligo the last day. Full-forward Darragh Kirwan was the star for the Lilies in Markievicz Park as he contributed 1-05, including a first-half two-pointer and a polished second-half goal.
It's another trip to the province of Connacht and a meeting with a Leitrim side who were demolished by Laois last Saturday.
Division 3 table
The O'Moore now host a Sligo outfit who have to win if they are to have any chance of promotion, this after many tipped Tony McEntee's side for promotion.
Offaly, unbeaten so far, are certainly looking up, but can expect another test of their credentials at home to Antrim.
In Ennis, Peter Keane's Clare, who made light work of Leitrim in Round 2, welcome Fermanagh.
Division 4
Leaders Wexford welcome Carlow to Chadwicks Park in a top of the table clash. The latter are just ahead of Tipperary on score difference, with the Premier heading to Fraher Field to take on Waterford.
Division 4 table
Wicklow got back on track when defeating the Déise last weekend and are at home again for the visit of Longford.
In Ruislip, London play host to Limerick.
