Kerry to play Monaghan, Meath and Dublin or Louth in All-Ireland SFC Group 4 if they win Munster final

In theory Kerry could face Dublin in the Group Stage of the All-Ireland Championship, which starts in the middle of May, but a far more likely scenario is that Kerry will be in Group 4 and will play Monaghan, Meath and Louth in that order.

Assuming that Kerry beat Clare in Sunday’s Munster Final in Ennis – and it would be a huge shock if the Kingdom don’t retain their provincial title – then Jack O’Connor’s team will go into Group 4 as one of the top seeds. That puts them in with Monaghan, who were a no.3 seed in Tuesday’s draw, and Meath, who were the last fourth seeded team drawn out.

Kerry will also face the Leinster Championship runner-up, which is almost certain to be Louth, as they face Dublin who are odds-on to win the county’s 14th consecutive Leinster title.

The schedule of games means that Kerry will start their Group Stage at home to Monaghan on the weekend of May 18/19, followed a fortnight later by a trip to Pairc Tailteann in Navan to play Meath, who qualified for the Sam Maguire Cup as Tailteann Cup winners from 2023.

Kerry’s final game of the group phase will be against Louth at neutral venue on the weekend of June 15 / 16. Kerry and Louth met in last year’s All-Ireland Group Stage as no.1 and no.2 seeds respectively, with that game played in O’Moore Park in Portlaoise, which Kerry won by 5-24 to 0-11.

In the unlikely – but still possible – scenario that Kerry are beaten in Sunday’s Munster final, they will go into Group 3 as second seeds. There they would face the Ulster champions, which will be Donegal or Armagh, as well as Tyrone (third seed) and a rematch with Cork, who are fourth seed.

Group 1 looks like it is the ‘Group of Death’ with the Connacht champions – Galway or Mayo – and the beaten Ulster finalists – Donegal or Armagh – grouped with the recently crowned National League champions, Derry, alongside Westmeath. With three teams to qualify from each group, it would appear that Westmeath will really struggle to get out of Group 1, but the order in which the other three finish is anyone’s guess.

The reward for topping each group is passage direct to the All-Ireland quarter-finals, while the second placed team in each group will have home advantage in a Preliminary Quarter-final against a third placed team other than the one from their own group.

All-Ireland SFC Group Stage

Group 1: Galway or Mayo, Armagh or Donegal, Derry, Westmeath

Group 2: Dublin or Louth, Galway or Mayo, Roscommon, Cavan

Group 3: Armagh or Donegal, Kerry or Clare, Tyrone, Cork

Group 4: Kerry or Clare, Dublin or Louth, Monaghan, Meath

All-Ireland SFC Group Stage schedule

Round 1

Saturday / Sunday, May 18 / 19

Seed 1 (Munster/Connacht champions) v Seed 3; Seed 2 (Munster/Connacht runner-up) v Seed 4

(Seed 1 & 2 will have home venue)

Saturday / Sunday, May 25 / 26

Seed 1 (Leinster/Ulster champions) v Seed 3; Seed 2 (Leinster/Ulster runner-up) v Seed 4

(Seed 1 & 2 will have home venue)

Round 2

Saturday / Sunday, June 1 / 2

Seed 3 v Seed 2; Seed 4 v Seed 1

(Seed 3 & 4 will have home venue)

Round 3

Saturday / Sunday, June 15 / 16

Seed 1 v Seed 2; Seed 3 v Seed 4

(Games will be played at neutral venues)

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The draw for the 2024 Tailteann Cup also took place on Tuesday, with Kildare, Sligo, Fermanagh and Down the top seeded teams.

Group 1: Kildare, Leitrim, Longford, Waterford

Group 2: Sligo, Antrim, Wexford, Tipperary

Group 3: Fermanagh, Laois, Wexford, Carlow

Group 4: Down, Offaly, Limerick, London

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