Busy spell now looms for clubs at midway mark of ACL

CLUBS spanning the length and breadth of Tyrone face a busy spell of matches in the All County Leagues with the championship season coming into view.

Galbally lead the way in Division One after seven rounds of action, but there’s still a lot of football to be played over the coming weeks, including two double rounds (Wednesday, August 13 and Sunday, August 17, and subsequently Wednesday, 27 and Sunday, August 31) before the senior championship commences on the four days between Thursday, September 11 and Sunday, September 14.

It’s a similar story in Division Two with two double rounds also factored into the schedule (Wednesday, August 13 and Sunday, August 17, and Wednesday, August 20 and Sunday 24, the final week of league action.)

In Division 3A, each team has played at least nine of their 14 games, and it will all be wrapped up by Sunday, August 17, a week before the commencement of the Junior Championship.

The newly introduced Division 3B is the closest to completion, with only four rounds remaining. It will finish up on Saturday, August 9, two weeks in advance of the Junior championship.

In terms of this year’s league structures, in Division One this year, the team that finishes top wins the league trophy and qualifies for the league final. The next two teams play off with the winner qualifying for the league final.

The bottom placed team in Division One will be relegated to Division Two, while the next two lowest teams participate in a play off. The loser of that particular contest is relegated to Division Two, and the winner play in a promotion/relegation clash with the winner of the Division Two promotion play-off team.

In Division Two, the top team wins the league and is promoted. Should the top team win both league and championship, the second highest team is promoted.

The next two teams will play off and the winner of that game playing the Division One relegation play-off winner in a promotion/relegation play off.

The bottom team in Division Two will be relegated to Division 3A. The next two lowest-placed teams will play off, with the loser relegated to Division 3A.

In Division 3A, the top team wins the league and is promoted. If that team wins the championship, the team finishing second will be promoted to Division Two.

The team that finishes bottom is relegated, while the team that finishes second bottom will play off with the second-placed team from 3A, the loser of which will play in Division 3B in 2026.

And then in Division 3B, the top team is promoted to Division 3A. The second-placed team has a play-off with the team that finishes second-from-bottom in Division 3A. The loser of that game plays Division 3B football in 2026.