SCOTSTOWN began their title defence with a comfortable win at home to 2022 champions Ballybay on Saturday.
A game between the teams who have qualified for the league final never ignited, with seven points from Jack McCarron leading Scotstown towards a winning start.
Ballybay took a five-game winning streak into the championship, but while they competed well in defence, their challenge faltered as they went almost 25 minutes without scoring in the second half.
Corduff are also off the mark in Group 1 after they pipped Cremartin.
A dull first half ended with Cremartin a point to the good at 0-3 to 0-2 on their return to the SFC, but as the game opened up a bit after the restart, the introduction of Keith McEnaney helped Corduff push on.
Fergal Hanratty’s fifth point moved Corduff six clear down the home straight and although Cremartin scrambled home a late goal through Jack Carragher, the hosts held on.
Killanny marked their first-ever SFC game on home soil with a one-point win over fellow south-Monaghan side Donaghmoyne yesterday.
The solitary score of the opening quarter was a big one, with Killian Collins hitting the net for Killanny, who went on to lead by 1-2 to 0-3 at the break.
The 2023 IFC winners moved four clear at one stage, but points from David Garland and Liam McDonald kept Donaghmoyne in touch and when Stephen Finnegan found the net five minutes from time, the tide looked to have turned in Donaghmoyne’s favour.
However, Killanny cancelled that out with three late scores: two by Eddie Walsh and a winner by Collins.
The last game of the weekend was the most dramatic, with Clontibret doing just enough to turn over last year’s runners-up Inniskeen.
Clontibret were a point down at half-time, but a brace of goals from Darragh Hughes proved decisive as they belied their stuttering league form, despite losing Conor McManus to injury.
Fourteen-man Inniskeen had nine scorers in all, but Dónal Meegan (0-6) was their only player to hit more than a point in a game that ended with some drama when Andrew Woods bundled the ball into the net, only for the goal to be disallowed, leaving Clontibret to cling on for the only away win of the opening round.
