1925–26 National Football League (Ireland) Explained

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

Leinster I

Table

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

Leinster II

Table

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

Westmeath forfeited the points from their win v Offaly due to being late on the field^[6]

Leinster III

Table

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

Munster (Munster Football League)

Won by .

Ulster (Dr McKenna Cup)

North-West Group

Play-Offs

North-East Group

Play-Offs

Final standings

North-West Group

Team	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	Status
	3	2	0	1	4
	3	2	0	1	4
	3	2	0	1	4
	3	0	0	3	0

North-East Group

Team	Pld	W	D	L	Pts	Status
	3	2	1	0	5	Advance to Knockout stage
	3	2	1	0	5
	2	0	0	2	0
	2	0	0	2	0

Knockout stage

Quarter-finals

----

Semi-finals

----An objection was successfully made and a replay ordered.----

Leinster League inter-group ties

• 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.^[7]

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

• 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
	2	2	0	0	4	Leinster League winners
	2	1	0	1	2
	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.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Leinster's National Football League Winning Teams . 2015-07-12 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150715023017/http://www.leinstergaa.ie/_fileupload/Archives/P219_222_League.pdf . 2015-07-15 . dead .
2. Web site: NFL Facts and Figures . 2015-07-14 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150714230207/http://elverysblog.com/2015/04/25/nfl-final-dublin-v-cork-facts-figures/ . 2015-07-14 . dead .
3. Web site: National League facts Ireland's Own . 2015-07-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150404221507/https://www.irelandsown.ie/2015/01/20/national-hurling-league-facts/ . 2015-04-04 . dead .
4. https://web.archive.org/web/20110822195205/http://www.laoisgaa.ie/contentPage/43273/brady_takes_chair1920-1929 Laois GAA History, 1920-29
5. "National League", Irish Independent, 07/05/1926, p. 10
6. "League Figures" Irish Independent, Friday 20 November 1925
7. "Unpleasant incident". Sunday Independent, 13/12/1923, p. 7