Two to tumble as Munster standing undermined

For Munster football, a chastening weekend lies in store. Irrespective of what materialises at the Athletic Grounds and Semple Stadium tomorrow afternoon, two from Clare, Cork, and Tipperary will suffer relegation to Division 3. What it means is that Munster representation in the league’s top two divisions will be reduced to just two next year, a figure which compares poorly with the other three provinces.

Even if Roscommon are relegated from Division 1 tomorrow, Connacht will still have two counties sat at the top table in 2020 and three in the top 16. As for Ulster and Leinster, promotion for Down and Laois, who currently head the Division 3 table, would see their numbers across Division 1 and 2 swell to seven and four, respectively.