Here's the lie of the land for Donegal and the other All-Ireland series hopefuls

Donegal’s win over Down in the Ulster SFC semi-final means they are guaranteed a seeding pot of either one or two in the All-Ireland series - although there's plenty more to worry about before that. 

The top seeds will be the winners of the four provincial championships, with the losing finalists making up pot two in the four-team groups.

The side managed by Jim McGuinness overcame Down 1-19 to 0-16 in Clones on Sunday, setting up a repeat of last year’s final against Armagh, which Donegal won 6-5 on penalties following a 0-20 to 0-20 draw after extra-time. So, come the final on Saturday, May 10, All-Ireland champions are aiming for a first provincial crown since 2008 while McGuinness is seeking a fifth Ulster title, now in his sixth season at the helm.

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So aside from Donegal taking on Armagh in Ulster, in Leinster there will be a repeat of the 2010 decider between Louth and Meath; the familiar pair of Mayo and Galway will lock horns in Connacht, while Clare will be hoping to replicate their famous 1992 Munster success against Kerry.

The remaining eight places go to the seven teams, who are not in provincial finals, that finished highest in the Allianz League, while Down were guaranteed a spot as winners of last year’s Tailteann.

Therefore, the third seeds are Dublin, Monaghan, Roscommon and Tyrone and joining down as fourth seeds will be Derry, Cavan and Cork.

Seeds one and two: Donegal/Armagh; Louth/Meath; Kerry/Clare, Galway/Mayo
Seeds three: Dublin, Monaghan, Roscommon, Tyrone.
Seeds four: Derry, Cavan, Cork, Down.

The round-robin stage of the All-Ireland SFC gets underway on the weekend of May 17/18, although Donegal and Armagh, regardless of who wins in Ulster will not get their series underway until the weekend of May 24/25. Series two is on the weekend of May 31/June 1, and the final series of matches is on June 14/15.

The four group winners will qualify automatically for the All-Ireland quarter-finals, which are down for the weekend of June 20/21 and June 27/28. The teams who finish second and third will play-off in the All-Ireland preliminary quarter-finals on June 14/15. The All-Ireland semi-finals will be contested on July 12/13 with the final to be played on the weekend on July 26/27.