Massive game as Balto face the Louth champs

BALTINGLASS are back on the big stage this weekend when they set out their stall in the opening game of the AIB Leinster Club Championship in Aughrim this weekend.

It’s a welcome return to Leinster club action for Paul Garrigan’s men who face the first-time winners from Louth, Sean O’Mahony’s in the county grounds at 2 p.m.

The Baltinglass men lifted their 22nd Wicklow Senior title with a 1-14 to 1-09 win over St Patrick’s three weeks ago and will relish the chance of finally getting another long-awaited crack at Leinster’s premier club competition.

A fine team and management performance on the day has rightly earned Baltinglass plenty of internal acclaim and now they are back at the top in Wicklow football they could be hard to shift.

For now, the challenge of the Louth men under manager Alan Craven will be foremost in the thoughts of manager Paul Garrigan and the rest of his backroom team.

Ahead of that game is the meeting of AGB and Pearse Gaels in the Minor football ‘A’ final which throws in at 11.45 a.m.

AGB got the better of Avondale in their semi-final while Pearse Gaels defeated a fancied Baltinglass to reach the decider.

There will be a large portion of county Minors on view and it should make for a high-quality game with plenty of pace and skill on show.

The Arklow lads play the game with plenty of speed, tight marking backs, two very mobile midfielders and classy forwards who never stop sniffing out a chance for a score. The Pearse Gaels squad will have more of the team ethic about them now having had time to work on things in the past month or two. Full previews inside.