1925–26 National Football League (Ireland)

1925–26 National Football League

League details
Dates	1925 – 19 September 1926
League champions
Winners	Laois (1st win)
Captain	Dick Miller
League runners-up
Runners-up	Dublin
1927–28 →

The 1925–26 National Football League was the 1st staging of the National Football League, a Gaelic football tournament for the Gaelic Athletic Association county teams of Ireland.

The inaugural NFL was won by Laois, captained by Dick Miller. They defeated Sligo in the semi-final after a lost game was ordered replayed, and beat Dublin in a low-scoring final despite losing two players, Paddy Lenihan and Bill Keeley, to emigration shortly before the final.^[1][2][3]

Format

The league was organised on a provincial basis with a separate league for each province: three leagues for Leinster due to the large number of counties. The six league winners played a knockout tournament to decide the National Football League. It is mentioned that the three Leinster Group winners played off (Longford scratching, Laois beating Dublin) for a gold medal, but this does not seem to have formed part of the league proper.^[4]

Knockout stage qualifiers

• Leinster: 3 teams
• Munster: 1 team
• Connacht: 1 team^[5]
• Ulster: 1 team

Group Stage

Connacht (Connacht Railway Cup)

Results

Roscommon v Leitrim

7 June 1925 Semi-Final	Roscommon	1-5 — 0-7	Leitrim	Palace Grounds, Strokestown[6]
				Referee: P. Kilduff Mayo

Sligo v Mayo

21 June 1925 Semi-Final	Sligo	1-4 — 1-1	Mayo	Ballaghaderreen[7]
				Referee: C. Flynn Leitrim

Sligo v Roscommon

25 October 1925 Final	Sligo	5-2 — 0-2	Roscommon	Tubbercurry, Sligo[8]

Leinster I

Results

Kildare v Meath

13 September 1925 Round 1	Kildare	5-1 — 3-1	Meath	Navan[9]

Louth v Dublin

11 October 1925 Round 1	Louth	1-5 — 3-3	Dublin	Dundalk[10]

Dublin v Meath

18 October 1925 Round 2	Dublin	0-7 — 1-2	Meath	Croke Park, Dublin[11]

Kildare v Louth

25 October 1925 Round 2	Kildare	3-3 — 1-2	Louth	Newbridge[12]

Dublin v Kildare

8 November 1925 Round 3	Dublin	2-5 — 1-3	Kildare	Croke Park, Dublin[13]

Meath v Louth

8 November 1925 Round 3	Meath	1-7 — 3-5	Louth	Navan[14]

Table

Team	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	Status
Dublin	3	3	0	0	6	Advance to Knockout stage
Kildare	3	2	0	1	4
Louth	3	1	0	2	2
Meath	3	0	0	3	0

Leinster II

Results

Westmeath v Offaly

12 July 1925	Westmeath	1-7 — 1-3	Offaly	Mullingar[15]
				Referee: Joe Curran, Meath

Wicklow v Longford

11 October 1925	Wicklow	0-3 — 2-7	Longford	Bray[16]
				Referee: Mr. O'Brien, Dublin

Longford v Westmeath

25 October 1925	Longford	2-6 — 0-3	Westmeath	Longford[17]
				Referee: Mr. J. Kelly

Wicklow v Westmeath

15 November 1925 Round 3	Wicklow	5-8 — 1-3	Westmeath	Naas[18]

Offaly v Wicklow

22 November 1925 Round 3	Offaly	1-3 — 1-4	Wicklow	Tullamore[19]

Table

Team	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	Status
Longford	3	3	0	0	6	Advance to Knockout stage
Wicklow	3	2	0	1	4
Westmeath	3	1	0	2	0
Offaly	3	0	0	3	0

Westmeath forfeited the points from their win v Offaly due to being late on the field^[20]

Leinster III

Results

Wexford v Carlow

2 August 1925	Wexford	5-6 — 1-3	Carlow	Enniscorthy[21]

Carlow v Laois

20 September 1925	Carlow	1-4 — 2-5	Laois	Graiguecullen, Laois[22]

Kilkenny v Wexford

11 October 1925	Kilkenny	1-2 — 3-5	Wexford	St. James's Park, Kilkenny[23]
				Referee: J Delaney

Table

Team	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	Status
Laois	3	3	0	0	6	Advance to Knockout stage
Wexford	3	2	0	1	4
Carlow	2	0	0	2	0
Kilkenny	2	0	0	2	0

Munster (Munster Football League)

Won by Kerry.

Clare v Kerry

11 October 1925 1	Clare	1-4 — 3-6	Kerry	Milltown Malbay[24]

Cork v Kerry

15 November 1925 2	Cork	0-0 — 2-8	Kerry	Macroom[25]

Waterford v Limerick

15 November 1925 2	Waterford	2-1 — 1-2	Limerick	Tipperary

Waterford v Kerry

22 November 1925 3	Waterford	1-0 — 0-12	Kerry	Waterford[26]

Kerry v Limerick

29 November 1925 4	Kerry	3-4 — 2-0	Limerick	Listowel[27]

Waterford v Cork

29 November 1925 4	Waterford	1-2 — 2-3	Cork	Dungarvan[28]

Cork v Limerick

28 February 1926 5	Cork	0-4 — 1-0	Limerick	Fermoy[29]

Tipperary v Clare

7 March 1926 5	Tipperary	2-5 — 1-4	Clare	Clonmel[30]

Kerry v Tipperary

13 June 1926 5	Kerry	0-5 — 0-2	Tipperary	Austin Stack Park, Tralee[31]

Ulster (Dr McKenna Cup)

North-West Group

Regulation games

Cavan v Fermanagh

8 November 1925	Cavan	4-3 — 2-3	Fermanagh	Belturbet,[32]
				Referee: J. Murphy Monaghan

Tyrone v Fermanagh

29 November 1925	Tyrone	1-1 — 0-2	Fermanagh	Enniskillen,[33]
				Referee: G. McGovern Cavan

Donegal v Cavan

29 November 1925	Donegal	6-5 — 3-5	Cavan	Ballyshannon,[34]

Donegal v Fermanagh

20 December 1925	Donegal	1-5 — 2-1	Fermanagh	Stranorlar,[35]

Cavan v Tyrone

20 December 1925	Cavan	4-2 — 2-0	Tyrone	Dungannon,[36]

Tyrone v Donegal

17 January 1926	Tyrone	3-6 — 2-2	Donegal	Donaghmore,[37]
				Referee: Mr. Cleary Antrim

Play-Offs

Donegal v Tyrone

28 February 1926 Play-Off (2nd Place)	Donegal	4-3 — 3-6	Tyrone	Omagh,[38]
				Attendance: 2,000

Donegal v Tyrone

14 March 1926 Play-Off (2nd Place) Replay	Donegal	4-4 — 2-3	Tyrone	Omagh,[39]
				Attendance: 6,000

Cavan v Donegal

28 March 1926 Play-Off (1st Place)	Cavan	4-8 — 2-4	Donegal	Ballyconnell,[40]

North-East Group

Regulation games

Antrim v Monaghan

1 November 1925	Antrim	0-7 — 0-5	Monaghan	Clones[41]

Armagh v Monaghan

6 December 1925	Armagh	2-6 — 3-1	Monaghan	Castleblaney,[42]

Antrim v Down

13 December 1925	Antrim	1-6 — 2-2	Down	Castlewellan,[43]
				Referee: P. Murray Armagh

Armagh v Down

24 January 1926	Armagh	3-0 — 2-0	Down	Hilltown

Play-Offs

Antrim v Armagh

7 March 1926 For 1st place (replay)	Antrim	1-4 — 0-3	Armagh	Newry[44]
				Referee: P McGivern Down

Final

Antrim v Cavan

11 April 1926 Final	Antrim	2-5 — 0-5	Cavan	Belfast,[45]
				Referee: J. Cooney Armagh

Final Standings

North-West Group Team Pld W D L Pts Status Cavan 3 2 0 1 4 Donegal 3 2 0 1 4 Tyrone 3 2 0 1 4 Fermanagh 3 0 0 3 0

North-East Group Team Pld W D L Pts Status Antrim 3 2 1 0 5 Advance to Knockout stage Armagh 3 2 1 0 5 Monaghan 2 0 0 2 0 Down 2 0 0 2 0

Knockout stage

Quarter-Finals

Sligo v Longford

14 February 1926

Sligo	3-1 – 0-5	Longford

Longford

---

Laois v Kerry

21 March 1926

Laois	1-6 – 1-5	Kerry

Croke Park, Dublin

Semi-Finals

Dublin v Antrim

25 April 1926 Semi-final

Dublin	0-8 – 0-5	Antrim

Dundalk[46] Referee: T. Burke, Drogheda

---

Sligo v Laois

9 May 1926 Semi-final

Sligo	3-5 – 2-6	Laois

Croke Park, Dublin

An objection was successfully made and a replay ordered.

---

Laois v Sligo

27 June 1926 Semi-final replay

Laois	4-6 – 1-4	Sligo

Roscommon[47]

Final

Laois v Dublin

19 September 1926

Laois	2-1 – 1-0	Dublin
Jack Brown 2-0, Tom Costello 0-1		Peter Stynes 1-0

Barrett's Park, New Ross Referee: P McCullagh (Wexford)

Leinster League Inter-group Ties

Longford v Dublin

29 November 1925 Game 1	Longford	2-2 — 2-2	Dublin	Longford[48]

• The game was initially awarded to Longford as Dublin failed to finish owing to a disputed decision. Later, the Leinster Council declared the result void and ordered a replay.^[49]

Dublin v Longford

31 January 1926 Game 1 replay	Dublin	3-5 — 0-4	Longford	Mulingar[50]

• Match was abandoned with seven minutes remaining. The game was awarded to Dublin

Laois v Dublin

20 December 1925 Game 2	Laois	1-3 — 1-2	Dublin	Croke Park, Dublin[51]

Laois v Longford

31 January 1926 Game 3	Laois	w/o — scr.	Longford	Portlaoise[52]

• Longford did not play in protest at the fact that Game 1 replay versus Dublin was awarded to Dublin

Table

Team	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	Status
Laois	2	2	0	0	4	Leinster League winners
Dublin	2	1	0	1	2
Longford	2	0	0	2	0

Laois won the Leinster Football League. This would appear to have been a separate competition, and this ties did not form part of the National Football League proper.

References

1. Leinster’s National Football League Winning Teams
2. NFL Facts and Figures
4. Laois GAA History, 1920-29
5. "National League", Irish Independent, 07/05/1926, p. 10
6. "Leitrim and Roscommon meet in Senior Football contest",Leitrim Observer, 12 June 1925, p. 1
7. "Railway Cup Semi-Final",Irish Independent, 22 June 1925, p. 9
8. Irish Independent, 29 October 1925, p. 9
9. "Kildare v Meath",Kildare Observer, 19 September 1925, p. 5
10. "Dublin's success",Irish Independent, 12 October 1925, p. 11
11. "Dublin defeat Meath",Cork Examiner, 19 October 1925, p. 5
12. "National Football League",Irish Independent, 27 October 1925, p. 9
13. "Leinster Football League",Cork Examiner, 9 November 1925, p. 6
14. "Leinster Football League",Meath Chronicle, 14 November 1925, p. 7
15. "National Football League", Westmeath Examiner, 18 July 1925, p. 8
16. Irish Independent, 12 October 1925, p. 11
17. "Belated victory", Irish Independent, 26 October 1925, p. 9
18. "Goalkeeper's busy", Irish Independent, 16 November 1925, p. 11
19. "A point victory", Irish Independent, 23 November 1925, p. 11
20. “League Figures” Irish Independent, Friday 20 November 1925
21. Irish Independent, 4 August 1925, p. 9
22. Irish Independent, 20 September 1925, p. 10
23. Irish Independent, 12 October 1925, p. 11
24. Irish Independent, 12 October 1925, p. 11
25. "Kerry's easy victory", The Kerryman, 21 November 1925, p. 2
26. "Kerry defeat Waterford", The Kerryman, 28 November 1925, p. 2
27. "Munster football league", The Kerryman, 5 December 1925, p. 2
28. "Match at Dungarvan", Cork Examiner, 30 November 1925, p. 8
29. "GAA leagues", Irish Independent, 1 March 1926, p. 9
30. "McGrath Cup league", Cork Examiner, 10 March 1926, p. 5
31. "Kerry wins McGrath Cup", The Kerryman, 19 June 1926, p. 5
32. "GAA News", Fermanagh Herald, 14 November 1925, p. 5,
33. "Ulster League Tie", Ulster Herald, 5 December 1925, p. 12,
34. "Ulster Football Surprise", Irish Independent, 30 November 1925, p. 10,
35. "Gaelic Games", Irish Independent, 22 December 1925, p. 10,
36. "Gaelic Games", Irish Independent, 22 December 1925, p. 10,
37. "Irish Independent", Ulster Herald, 19 January 1926, p. 10,
38. "Ulster Tie Drawn", Irish Independent, 01 March 1926, p. 9,
39. "Ulster Football League", Ulster Herald, 20 March 1926, p. 3,
40. "Gaelic Pastimes", Meath Chronicle, 3 April 1926, p. 7,
41. "Ulster Football League", Irish Independent, 3 November 1925, p. 10,
42. "Ulster League Surprise", Irish Independent, 7 December 1925, p. 10,
43. "Ulster League", Irish Independent, 15 December 1925, p. 10,
44. "Ulster Senior League", Irish Independent, 8 March 1926, p. 10,
45. "Champions beaten", Irish Independent, 12/04/1926, p. 9,
46. "Narrow defeat for Antrim", Irish Independent, 26/04/1926, p. 9
47. "Leix defeat Sligo in Semi-Final", Irish Independent, 28/06/1926, p. 9
48. "Level scoring", Irish Independent, 30/11/1925, p. 10
49. “Unpleasant incident”. Sunday Independent, 13/12/1923, p. 7
50. "Leinster Football League", Irish Independent, 01/02/1926, p. 9
51. "Leix win Group honours", Irish Independent, 21/12/1925, p. 9
52. "Longford not to play", Irish Independent, 26/02/1926, p. 9