The GH Corlett Woods Cup fires into life this weekend with five fixtures taking place in the preliminary round of the annual Division Two competition.

The tie of the round arguably takes place at Mullen-e-Cloie where promotion and title hopefuls St John’s and Colby lock horns. The teams currently lie third and second in the table respectively, with only two points between them but with the Saints having three games in hand over their rivals.

The teams played out a 1-1 draw when they last met back in the league in November so all signs point to this being another close contest.

Onchan versus Michael United should also be a tight affair at the Nivison Stadium. The Os are currently 10 points better off than the Aces but they have lost their last three games on the bounce, in which time Michael’s form has improved slightly as they begin to find their feet. Home advantage could prove key, but this one could well go either way.

The other three preliminary round ties are all - on paper at least- more one-sided with clear favourites in each. The first game sees RYCOB host Douglas and District at Scoill ree Gorree and, while the visitors have previous when it comes to upsetting the so called bigger teams, Youthie should prove too strong.

The same could be said for Gymns who host Braddan in Tromode: the home team pushed St George’s all the way in a cup game last year but the Swans will start as favourites. As will Union Mills who travel to Bemahague to face Governor’s Athletic.