Armagh v Antrim Prediction, Preview & Odds – Ulster Championship
We have an Armagh v Antrim prediction along with the betting odds for you ahead of their clash in the Ulster Championship on Saturday evening.
The winner of the Armagh v Antrim Ulster Championship preliminary round will go on to face Cavan in the Ulster quarter-final on April 22nd.
Armagh v Antrim Match Info
When? 5.00 pm, Saturday, April 8th
Where? Athletic Grounds, Co. Armagh
TV Channel? BBC2 NI
Armagh v Antrim Preview
Armagh’s Form
Armagh will be playing their league football in Division 2 next year, following a narrow relegation in the final round of games in a 0-18 – 0-16 defeat from Tyrone. Kieran McGeeney’s side finished seventh in the eight-team table, with a record of two wins one draw and four defeats.
Following Armagh’s relegation to Division 2 they have drifted out in the All-Ireland odds back to 28/1.
Their two victories came over Ulster rivals Monaghan and Donegal while their draw came v Mayo. While Armagh had the third-worst attack in their division with 95 points scored they also had the third-best attack with only 98 points conceded.
Armagh and Antrim met in The McKenna Cup this January with Armagh winning out by 12 points with a score of 2-20 to Antrim’s 2-08.
Antrim’s Form
Antrim will play their football in Division 3 again this season after narrowly avoiding relegation to Division 4, by finishing sixth in Division 3, with a record of two wins and five defeats. Their two victories came v Tipperary in a 0-14 to 1-19 win along with an impressive win v Cavan (who got promoted to Division 2) 1-17 to 2-12.
While Antrim had a decent attack scoring 124 points which was good enough to be the fourth-best attack, it was their defence that left them down conceding 158 points a staggering average of 22.57 points conceded per match.
Key Players To Watch
Rian O’Neill
Many thought that Armagh’s Rian O’Neill was deserving of an All-Star inclusion for his performances in the 2022 season, but it did not come.
Nevertheless, he has put that disappointment behind him and has been his counties star-performer in the league who’s score of 0-25 was only beaten by Damien McCurry of Tyrone and Ryan O’Donoghue of Mayo for an average of 4.16 points across his six matches.
Ruairi McCann
Antrim were strong going forward in their Division 3 League campaign and that can be at least partially credited to the Antrim Ace who was their second top-scorer with his 2-6 total only less than Odhran Eastwood who scored 1-12.
The reason I have earmarked Ruairi as the key player to watch is his ability to cut loose when on form during the league he scored 2-1 v Down and 1-4 v Longford, If Antrim are to stand a chance at the weekend they will need a similar power scoring tally.
Armagh v Antrim Head-to-Head Results
Armagh 2-20 Antrim 2-08 | 2023 McKenna Cup
Armagh 4-15 Antrim 0-14 | 2021 USFC Quarter-Final
Antrim 1-10 Armagh 2-21 | 2019 McKenna Cup R2
Armagh v Antrim Odds
The odds makers make Armagh heavy favourites as we get closer to Saturday’s game! They can be currently gotten at 1/20.
Antrim are huge underdogs who can be gotten at 8/1 while the draw is 20/1.
The handicap for the game is Armagh -9 at EVS.
Armagh v Antrim Prediction & Best Bet
It’s very difficult to look past Armagh in this one especially when you consider they ran out 12-point winners when these teams met in January.
Prediction: Armagh 1-18 Antrim 0-14
Best Bet: Armagh Winning Margin 7-9 Points 7/2
Click Below For All Our Armagh v Antrim Odds
*Prices subject to fluctuation
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