Sunday’s Intermediate Championship final between Easkey and Castleconnor (Markievicz Park, 4.45pm) is the sort of meeting that will capture the imagination of the entire GAA fraternity in Sligo and beyond as the west Sligo rivals battle it out for a place in next year’s Senior Championship.

For either club, a return to the senior grade – where both resided for most of the noughties – would be welcome, but even better would be the capture of silverware, and west Sligo bragging rights for the winter ahead.

In what has been the most competitive and open Intermediate Championship in years, both sides are perhaps shock finalists, certainly according to odds and predictions prior to the semi-finals.

Castleconnor brushed aside the challenge of Bunninadden with relative ease, despite the close look on the scoreboard, while Easkey came from five points down at half-time to defeat St Patrick’s 1-11 to 1-10.

It promises to be a sizzling atmosphere in Markievicz Park, where a large crowd is expected to see these rivals face off. It is difficult to decipher who has the upper hand coming into the contest given that both sides were outsiders for glory at the start of the year, but perhaps Easkey’s ability to come from behind – they made up an 11-point deficit in the quarter-final, and turned a five-point deficit into a one-point win in the semi-final – gives them a slight edge.

However, Castleconnor are a side hungry for success and eager to finally get over the line after some near misses in recent years. Eamon Cawley, formerly a St Farnan’s stalwart, had a superb hour in the semi-final and with him firing on all cylinders; it’s hard to look past Ollie Sexton’s side as potential champions.

Ultimately, this will be a ding-dong battle, and everything is set up to give us one of the most intriguing intermediate finals of the last decade.