The GAA are bracing themselves for the worst attendances at provincial football finals in well over a decade.

Monaghan v Armagh is the pick of the All-Ireland Round 2 SFC qualifier draw although Mayo face a tricky encounter against Down at Newry on Saturday week.

An old-fashioned shoot-out thrilled and enthralled a crowd of 21,192 at St Tiernach’s Park

TG4 Ulster champions Donegal have made three changes to the side beaten by Galway in the Lidl NFL Division 1 semi-final for their championship opener against Tyrone tomorrow.

Emma Duggan’s early goal paved the way for last year’s beaten finalists Meath who finally gained promotion to the second tier of the Lidl NFL with a comfortable Division 3 final win over Sligo.

Eimear Smyth scored the winner as Fermanagh claimed promotion and their first league title since 2007 with a Lidl NFL Division 4 final victory over the 14 players of Antrim.

Cork manager Ephie Fitzgerald has made three changes to his starting team for Sunday’s Lidl National League Division 1 Final clash with Galway – as the Leesiders chase a 12th top-flight crown.

Dublin hardly expected Monaghan to roll out the red carpet for them on Sunday but when the home side chose not to provide them with a guard of honour the visitors knew for sure they were in for a testing afternoon, writes John Fogarty.

The new manager of the Charlotte Independence can no more be blamed for the worst excesses of defensive play in football than David Bowie can be blamed for the Bay City Rollers, writes Tommy Martin

Regardless of how the CCCC occasionally surprises us, with Ballybofey or Omagh unlikely to host an All-Ireland semi-final in this or any foreseeable lifetime, this is a big as it gets — or will ever get — in the north-west.

“We’re fighting for our lives and we’ll have to bring everything.”

Donegal 2-18 Fermanagh 0-12

Twenty years after being denied an Ulster championship when Derry’s Joe Brolly snatched an injury time winning goal, yesterday Declan Bonner finally got his hands on the Anglo-Celt Cup.

In his job as a professional diver, Donegal centre-back Paul Brennan has seen the depths but has an opportunity of a career highlight on Sunday.

The word all last week was that Tyrone might have been happier playing this one in Clones.

Here’s a handy game-by-game guide to the 2018 leagues and championships.

Fermanagh claimed the TG4 All-Ireland ladies junior football crown at the second time of asking as they overcame Derry in a pulsating final replay in Clones this afternoon.

It’s hard to believe. Tyrone 1-21 Donegal 1-12 — and it was a scoreline that flattered Donegal.

Monaghan 1-20 Fermanagh 1-11: Monaghan’s support cast showed an eagerness to play a leading role in this year’s Ulster championship, with 13 different scorers in Saturday night’s win over Fermanagh an encouraging sign for the summer ahead.

It was late spring when the first withdrawal symptom sprouted like a new leaf on a tree.

Loose words from somebody in the Donegal camp at half-time in Sunday’s Ulster final inadvertently motivated Tyrone to victory, according to Niall Morgan.

Tyrone 0-13 Donegal 0-11: “We became men today.” Seán Cavanagh had proven long before now that he is most certainly one of those but you knew what he meant. This Tyrone team hadn’t earned their spurs before yesterday. Now they have.

Tyrone 5-18 Cavan 2-17: Five goals and a five-star performance from Tyrone in reaching a first Ulster SFC final since 2010, but such was their dominance at Clones yesterday, nothing could be read into the final scoreline.

Oulart-The Ballagh’s dreams of a unique AIB All-Ireland club double were dashed at Carriganore in Waterford, after Milford narrowly beat them 1-9 to 1-8 in their senior camogie semi-final.

Dublin held off a stiff challenge from Monaghan to prevail in their TG4 All-Ireland Ladies SFC quarter-final at St Tiernach’s Park in Clones this afternoon.

Armagh 2-13 Donegal 2-11

"The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses — behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights." — Muhammad Ali

The “massive costs” associated with HawkEye is the primary deterrent to the installation of the score detection system at Clones, according to Ulster Council chairman Martin McAviney.

It’s been said that since Rory Gallagher took over the mantle of Donegal manager from Jim McGuinness, the prototype remains the same, with minor modifications.

Two minutes before half-time in the 2011 Ulster semi-final, Tyrone ripped through the blanket and Brian McGuigan fed Stephen O’Neill, who cut inside two Donegal defenders.

DUBLIN 0-17 MONAGHAN 0-16: It took a while, but the Allianz Football League semi-finals finally flickered to life with less than 15 minutes to play in the second contest, thanks to Monaghan’s late and unexpected surge for a place in the decider.

Unlike The Honourable Mr Justice Horner, a lot of people made a rushed judgment about Casement Park on Monday morning, writes Paddy Heaney.

ULSTER SFC FINAL:

Super-cool substitute Rory Grugan rescued Armagh with a free deep into stoppage time, earning a replay for his side and another chance to shock Ulster champions Monaghan.

Antrim 0-12 Donegal 3-16

Donegal 3-16 Antrim 0-12

Seán Cavanagh admits he would have no qualms about pulling down a Monaghan player if he has to in Sunday’s Ulster quarter-final.

For 16 years now, Kieran McKeever has carried a mantle that he doesn’t want any more.