Derry Senior Football Championship preview: Slaughtneil clash with Glen

The semi-final of the Derry Senior Football Championship is this weekend, with all four sides capable of making it to the final on October 27.

Owenbeg will host these two fixtures across the week, along with the intermediate championship semi-finals.

Magherafelt v Newbridge

Owenbeg - Saturday - 8:15 pm

Newbridge narrowly came out on top when these two sides faced each other in the group stage of the championship.

This victory was the only thing that separated the two clubs as they progressed from the group as the top two seeds.

Newbridge would then face Bellaghy in the quarterfinal and dispatch the record holders of the championship professionally with their four-point victory.

The club were in fine scoring form that game as they swung the ball over the bar 18 times and know that if they can repeat that trick, they will be in their first final since 1991.

Their opponents, Magherafelt, on the other hand, overcame Dungiven convincingly in an excellent defensive display.

Last season’s defeated finalists are intent on reaching that stage again to wrong that right and secure their seventh title, and first since 2019.

The game promises to be a cagey affair with a side in fine attacking form, coming up against a strong defensive unit in Magherafelt on Saturday night.

Slaughtneil v Glen

Owenbeg - Sunday - 4 pm

Owenbeg will play host to a behemoth of a semi-final when the favourites for the championship come up against the current holders of the competition.

This game is a repeat of the first game of the championship for both sides, with Slaughtneil coming out on top that day, the teams serrated by a goal. 

Slaughtneil have looked head and shoulders above every other side this campaign, with Dungiven the only fixture where questions were raised about the team.

They will come into this fixture as favourites as they have navigated the competition so competently, and it was the same last time out in the quarterfinal, as they dispatched the challenge put to them by Ballinascreen.

Their opponents for this fixture, Glen, have found the championship tougher, as they have narrowly edged out many of their opponents, including Dungiven and Bellaghy.

It was no different in the quarterfinal, as they were almost dumped out of the competition by the intermediate league champions Lavey.

A sole point separated the two sides at the final whistle with Glen surviving to fight another day, and their task to secure their fourth title in a row has got no easier as they face the one team that has beat them in the competition over the last four years.

The game promises to be a tight, cagey affair between the two clubs that have won eight of the last 10 Derry Senior Football Championships, with the winner set to be favourite in the final.