Laois SFC Prediction: The Heath v Portarlington

Laois Shopping Centre Senior Football Championship

Laois SFC Round 1

The Heath v Portarlington

O'Moore Park @6.00pm, Saturday 27th July

Odds: Portarlington 2/7 | Draw 15/2 | The Heath 7/2

After suffering in the league from missing a large contingent of players through county set-ups, Portarlington still managed to finish above The Heath who had most of their players available throughout, bar Denis Booth.

Portarlington, after reaching the semi-finals in 2017, had a poor 2018 senior championship run. They narrowly beat Ballyroan Abbey in round one, before suffering losses to St Joseph's and Stradbally which saw them knocked out.

The Heath have struggled in recent years, with their Division 1 success all the way back in 2016 disappointingly being followed by poor league and championship showings by their standards. They saw off Ballyfin last year in a relegation semi-final to keep them afloat, with Evin Keane's return key to their turnaround.

Portarlington will welcome back players of the quality of Robert Pigott, Paddy O'Sullivan, Sean Byrne, Colm Murphy, Ronan Coffey, Colin Slevin and Alex Mohan which should be enough to see them into the winners section. The Heath will be no push overs, but Martin Murphy youthful Portarlington side will be looking to send out an early statement of their intentions for the championship ahead.

Verdict: Portarlington