Westmeath v Armagh, 7pm, Mullingar
Armagh make the journey to the Lake County on Saturday evening in what will be a rip roaring contest in my opinion. Armagh played Fermanagh in the last round of the qualifiers and easily brushed them aside so confidence is probably quite high in the Orchard County, whereas for Westmeath confidence is probably quite low after Dublin dished out a 30+ point beating in the Leinster semi-final meeting at Croke Park. However, there was some positives to be taken from that game.
Westmeath despite losing by a massive margin had some good performances, Killian Daly, Kieran Martin and Ger Egan all played well. However, more will be needed from John Heslin in this game as he was completely outplayed in the Dublin game. Paul Sharry is also an outstanding player and his athleticism and physicality will be needed against Kieran McGeeney’s charges. Armagh played well against Fermanagh and were much better than their Ulster opponents. Jamie Clarke looked like he was finding form, while players like Niall Grimley and Mark Shields also played well. Stefan Campbell is one of the best forward in the game and if he starts and plays anywhere near his best the Westmeath defence will be in bother.
In relation to odds, the bookmakers have this as Armagh 1/2 favourites and Westmeath 9/4 outsiders. I think the loss to Dublin will have a massive effect on Westmeath, Armagh with the confidence coming into this game and the win already in the qualifiers will get the win here in my opinion by 3 or 4 points
Verdict: Armagh
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