THE 2025 Intermediate Championship boiled down to the top two in the league competing for the glory of the Championship as Sarsfields and Moneyglass managed to both come away with a piece of silverware each.
This year Glengormley side St Enda's will no doubt be the favourites after a storming campaign which saw them breeze Division Two at the second-time of asking winning every game in their path to the title and making their return to Division One.
League campaigns are never a guarantee for the Championship, but they often allow an insight on who will be the team to beat during the campaign.
Last year Sarsfields clinched the league and despite Moneyglass spending months on their coat-tails they managed to catch the Stewartstown men in the Championship, proving that it is never a banker to assume the favourite will go all the way.
Top three in the group phase will earn themselves a knockout phase place with second and third into the
IFC - Group One
St Mary's Ahoghill
The North Antrim men parted with their top-flight in last season's Championship following a poor league and Championship campaign which led the team to conceding their status in Division One.
This season there has been a bit of buoyancy about the team since their return to the second-tier with a terrific season finishing third place despite St Enda's running away with the title. Hopes and dreams of silverware returning to the village of Ahoghill are certainly a much hotter prospect than last year, and if they can continue their terrific scoring efforts they may pose a bigger threat than expected.
Key Player: James O'Connell
Best Finish: Winners (2009)
Predicted Group Finish: 2nd
Glenavy St Joseph's
A strong second-half to the campaign saw Glenavy finish in the top-half of the table and allowed for them to have a shot at competing at becoming the 'best of the rest' in the wake of the St Enda's powerful run but unfortunately they were cemented to the bottom of the 2A table.
It has been almost a decade since the men from Glenavy achieved a top-flight campaign, if they were to reach the quarter-finals it would be a great achievement and firmly put the team back on track for a campaign with success hoped.
Key Player: Leon Lavery
Best Finish: Winners (2017)
Predicted Group Finish: 3rd
St Comgall's
Often the yoyo club at this level when it comes to taking the step up and competing, but last season they maintained their Division Two and Intermediate status and hopeful they can kick on to another level in this season's campaign.
St Comgall's have firmly given a convincing campaign racking up five wins including a thrashing over the Aggies to let them know it takes much more than a blistering Junior campaign to cause a stir in the second tier. Although, I feel it could prove tough for them to get out of a group which includes Glenavy and St Enda's.
Key Player: James McCabe
Best Finish: Group Stage (2025)
Predicted Group Finish: 5th
Can the Super T's find a way for Championship glory?
St Enda's
The remnants of the squad that won the 2018 Antrim and Ulster Championship before coming up just short to Kilcummin in the All-Ireland final of the same year.
Last season was a complete crash and burn, failing to make the immediate return to Division One and often falling by the wayside as Moneyglass and Sarsfields took flight to the top tier.
Building with experience, youth and returning stars has given the Glengormley side a firm platform and could lead to a domestic double should they, as expected, blow the opposition out of the water as they have done already in the league with a flawless campaign in their return to the Intermediate Championship. Nothing really stands in their way.
Key Player: Odhrán Eastwood
Best Finish: Winner (2018)
Predicted Group Finish: 1st
St Patrick's Lisburn
A team that are known for using their midfield height and finding the net to kill off teams, St Pat's have always been a bit of a dark horse when it comes to predicting the Antrim Intermediate Championship.
It probably would be bold pinning them for the top two in this group, but they could very well be the team that sneaks into the third spot and earns quarter-final berth where they would be a banana skin for any team.
Key Player: Tom Buckley
Best Finish: Quarter-Finals (2025)
Predicted Group Finish: 4th
Can St Agnes' come to the fore and step up to Intermediate level
IFC - Group Two
St Agnes' GAC
Having it all your own way can be great when you are in the flow. Unfortunately, that feeling when you play in Antrim's third tier does not often surpass one season and for the Aggies they found that out the hard way.
One win against St Comgall's during their first campaign at this level is something that they will look to rectify and despite likely relegation to the third tier once again, they will be wanting to show they can still compete at this level when it matters most – Championship time.
Key Player: David McGaharan
Best Finish: Never competed
Predicted Group Finish: 5th
Davitt's
A team of experienced heads which has proven handy when it has come to battling out with the Division Two sides for a number of seasons at this level.
They finished just above the drop this season to avoid being sent back to the third tier, but were not there on bad performance alone and managed to level the points tally of two other sides only being placed 10th on score difference. If they can tighten up at the back then there is a chance of a renaissance in Beechmount.
Key Player: CJ Sullivan
Best Finish: Group Stage (2025)
Predicted Group Finish: 4th
St Teresa's
The nearly men in the second tier are no doubt the Super T's, and that is by no means a slanting statement as it shows they have been competitive and almost made their return in several occasions having been pipped by just better sides in the latter stages of the tournament in recent seasons.
They've reached a final as recently as 2024 only for Ballymena's excellence, and last season the final four where they were pipped by the eventual winners, but they will be eyeing up that number one spot in this group without doubt and maybe they can go one further this time.
Key Player: Jay Mallon
Best Finish: Winners (2013)
Predicted Group Finish: 1st
Gort na Mona
A strange club, that is what I will say when it comes to the men from the Mona-Bypass, and it is not a detriment but given they probably should have had their day in Division Three if not for restructuring back in 2024.
Since then however, the old guard has passed on, and it's given the chance at a new lease on life allowing for their attacking football to shine in some parts of this season and establish themselves firmly as the best of the rest in recent seasons, and I think it could give them the edge to gain at least a quarter-final berth.
Key Player: Tarlach Enright
Best Finish: Winners (2005)
Predicted Group Finish: 3rd
St James' Aldergrove
The airport men will be hoping they can cool their jets and establish the running of the group after what was a decent season in their return to Division Two after a slow demise in the top-tier.
It felt inevitable they would return to the second-tier after poor Championship and league showings, but that often leaves the door open for a rebuild, and a chance that they could clinch silverware whilst their remaining stars still have the legs to do so.
Key Player: Ronan Hanna
Best Finish: Winners (2019)
Predicted Group Finish: 2nd
Tournament Winner: St Enda's
Dark Horse: St Teresa's
