SATURDAY
Leinster SFC preliminary round
Carlow v Laois, Dr Cullen Park
Offaly v Longford, O'Connor Park
Christy Ring Cup
Derry v London, Owenbeg
Mayo v Kildare, Ballina
Nicky Rackard Cup quarter-finals
Monaghan v Donegal, Clones
Fingal v Tyrone, Swords
Lory Meagher Cup round 3
Sligo v Warwickshire, Markievicz Park
Leitrim v Lancashire, Ballinamore
SUNDAY
Connacht SFC quarter-final
1530 Leitrim v Galway, Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada
Leinster SFC first round
1530 Louth v Westmeath, Gaelic Grounds, Drogheda
Ulster SFC preliminary round
1600 Donegal v Tyrone, Mac Cumhaill Park
ONLINE
Live blogs on all the weekend's action from 1830 on Saturday and 1500 on Sunday.
ON TV
Tyrone v Donegal - Live on RTE2 and RTE Player and worldwide on GAAGO.ie from 1515.
ON RADIO
Updates on all the day's matches including live commentary on Tyrone v Donegal on Radio 1 from 1400.
WEATHER
Sunday is expected to be bright, blustery days with a mixture of sunshine and showers. Temperatures will range from 11 to 14 degrees.
THE FIXTURES
Carlow v Laois - Leinster SFC preliminary round
Dr Cullen Park is the venue in a repeat of a Friday night clash in the championship from two years ago. That game was in the qualifiers and it resulted in an easy victory for the O'Moore County.
Carlow had a reasonable enough league and were in the promotion mix in Division 4 with two games to go. Laois, on the other hand, just about survived in Division 2.
A date with Kildare is the prize for the winner. Tomás Ó Flatharta's troops should prevail, but Carlow's early season form is enough to indicate that this tie may be a lot closer than people think.
Verdict: Laois
Offaly v Longford - Leinster SFC preliminary round
For the third time in seven weeks, Offaly and Longford do battle. The score so far is 1-1, with the Faithful County tieing up affairs with a comprehensive victory in the Division 4 final on 25 April.
Offaly manager Pat Flanagan told RTÉ Sport that the buzz is back around football in the county after their spring success.
He said: "It has has lifted the whole set-up. And especially the players - they were buzzing after that game. But that's no good unless they perform the next day.
“To go to Croke Park and to perform the way we did, scoring 4-13 from play, was very exciting - but also for the players it was very rewarding, for the efforts that they put in.
“I’ve been saying it to them all along, that there is huge ability within the panel and within the team, and it’s just a matter of finding that. And I think we got it on the day.
“The next stage is to try and get that performance again.”
Longford will be out to show that their Croke Park capitulation was just a blip with manager Jack Sheedy telling the local press "that there is little to separate a number of sides in Leinster on a given day."
Sheedy's side will improve for the trip to O'Connor Park, but you get the sense that Offaly's graph is rising that bit higher.
Verdict: Offaly
Leitrim v Galway - Connacht SFC quarter-final
All roads in the west lead to Carrick-on-Shannon where Leitrim will bid to upset the Tribesmen.
A Leitrim win, you would have to say, is unlikely. However, they have proven to be doughty opponents on their home patch and will be roared on by an enthusiastic support.
Manager Shane Ward introduces five newcomers to championship action in the shape of Matthew Murphy,Niall Woods, Thomas Mulvey, Ronan Kennedy and James McGrail.
Galway have already beaten New York in this campaign and will have their sights on a home date with Mayo in four weeks' time.
Manager Kevin Walsh makes two changes from the Big Apple encounter as Brian O’Donoghue takes over from Tom Healy in goal while Michael Lundy comes in for Eddie Hoare in the half-forward line.
It's 2008 since Galway last lifted the Nestor Cup and captain Paul Conroy believes it's now time for the side to deliver again at senior level and mount a mount a serious challenge to Mayo's dominance in the province .
He told RTÉ: "Mayo have been the benchmark in Connacht for the last couple of years and they’ve been very unlucky not to win an All-Ireland or two.
“But we’ve good young lads who’ve won two under-21 All-Ireland’s in the last five years, so we’re trying to drive that on and bring it through to the senior level.
“Mayo have been dominant the last couple of years and it’s up to us now to change that."
Verdict: Galway
Louth v Westmeath - Leinster SFC preliminary round
The Gaelic Grounds in Drogheda is the venue for the clash of two sides who suffered relegation ion the spring.
Louth, who came so close to winning Leinster in 2010, will be operating out of Division 4 next season, while Westmeath will be a section above. Their respective positions in the pecking order is another indication of how standards appear to be slipping in the country's biggest province.
The Wee County boss Colin Kelly has enlisted Mick O'Dwyer to give his side a spark before the championship. Sunday will see whether the Waterville maestro's urgings have any positive effect.
Westmeath name four championship newcomers in their team - Killian Daly Paddy Holloway, John Stapleton and Shane Dempsey.
Louth have six new starters: Anthony Williams, Bevan Duffy,Tommy Durnin, Patrick Reilly, Darren O’Hanlon and James Stewart.
Wexford await the winners in the quarter-final, not a clash the victor here would be too fearful of.
Verdict: Westmeath
Donegal v Tyrone - Ulster SFC preliminary round
Tyrone footballers head to Ballybofey where they will be underdogs in their battle with Rory Gallagher's charges.
Donegal have had the upper hand over the Red Hand in recent championship games between the sides and you would have to agree with the bookies' assumption that the winning trend will continue in this Ulster opener.
Tyrone got relegated from the league's top flight in the spring, while Donegal reached the semi-finals.
Former Donegal star Brendan Devenney believes that Tyrone will have to dictate affairs from the start if they are prevail in a game where he is "not expecting much in terms of entertainment."
Speaking further to RTÉ, Devenney said: "Tyrone will need to get the scores on the board earlier and still be in front with about 20 minutes to go.
"They'll have to decide where exactly they are going to deploy Seán Cavanagh. They could deploy him as an inside forward. Having their goalkeeper Niall Morgan fit will also be crucial, as converting long-range frees will be vital."
Tyrone are still awaiting on the fitness of Morgan, but irrespective of who lines out for them, Devenney is predicting a Donegal win come Sunday evening.
The 2012 champions welcome back Mark McHugh for this campaign and look in good shape under Gallagher as they bid to win a fourth Ulster crown in five years.
Verdict: Donegal
