It is a symptom of the convoluted GAA Championship structures, but in Gaelic football the Final 12 is a thing.
There are a dozen teams remaining in the football Championship and, on The Sunday Game, pundits Pat Spillane Aaron Kernan and Dessie Dolan were asked to rank them from 1-12.
Designed to generate debate – there are a few interesting things to conclude (if you take the word of the three wise men to mean anything).
Following their nine-point demolition of Kildare, Spillane, Dolan and Kernan were in agreement that three-in-a-row chasing Dublin remain the top team in the country.
Munster champions Kerry are the unanimous second-ranked team and therefore, in the eyes of RTÉ’s flagship show, a Dublin-Kerry All-Ireland final is the most likely pairing for the third Sunday of September, with the old rivals on opposite sides of the draw.
Despite their second successive Connacht defeat to Galway, Mayo remain a top 4 team in the eyes of the pundits, however only Dolan places them ahead of Tyrone – who blew Down away in the second half of Sunday’s Ulster final.
Host Des Cahill seemed personally affronted by the lowly ranking afforded Connacht champions Roscommon – adjudged to be the sixth best team remaining in the Championship by all three, despite their impressive defeat of Galway.
Bedraggled Cork, plucky Down and resurgent Armagh are viewed by all three to be the weakest sides remaining in the Championship.
Cork face Mayo on Saturday in the Gaelic Grounds, while Down were pitted against Monaghan and Armagh Kildare in Monday morning’s qualifier draw.
