Writing off the chances of underdogs has proven ill advised in this year’s provincial encounters in the All-Ireland SFC. \u00c9amonn Fitzmaurice and Lee Keegan are refusing to underestimate the prospects of Down and Roscommon in their upcoming fixtures against Armagh and Galway respectively.<\/p>\n
Roscommon pulled off an upset Rossies fans would regard as of the minor variety when downing Mayo in Castlebar<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, only the most enthusiastic of their followers could have dreamed of the team cruising to a 2-25 to 1-18 victory.<\/p>\n In The Sunday Game studio, Lee Keegan insisted that the Rossies had “a huge chance” of landing the Nestor Cup a fortnight from now, when they face a Galway outfit who failed to convince in a 1-20 to 2-12 victory over Leitrim on Saturday.<\/p>\n ‘This is a huge opportunity for them at home to win a Connacht opportunity’ – The panel give Roscommon every chance to beating Galway in a provincial decider pic.twitter.com\/wtcaXlK3Ha<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) April 26, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n “It’s in Dr Hyde Park. They were missing arguably three of their best players in Ruaidhr\u00ed Fallon, Brian Stack and Daire Cregg, they have to come back in,” he said.<\/p>\n “We don’t know about Galway. The performance was very shabby at the weekend, not sure of their best team, and they have injuries.<\/p>\n “From a Roscommon perspective, they have a huge opportunity, and they are well capable of doing it in two weeks’ time.”<\/p>\n Fitzmaurice flagged that being significant outsiders against Mayo suited Mark Dowd’s side, and that greater expectations against the Tribesmen had the potential to weigh heavier on their shoulders, but echoed Keegan’s sentiments, saying: “This is a huge opportunity for them at home to win a Connacht Championship and if they can replicate their form from today, they’ll take beating.”<\/p>\n Down’s 3-21 to 1-21 defeat of Donegal<\/a> in Letterkenny has to be regarded as a seismic shock, but when football’s Richter scale settles and the aftershocks abate, will the Mourne men be capable of replicating that display and rocking Armagh next weekend?<\/p>\n How will Down handle the growing expectation when they take on Armagh in an Ulster semi-final? pic.twitter.com\/XjdpZip0CH<\/a><\/p>\n