1977–78 National Football League (Ireland)

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1977–78 National Football League
League details
DatesOctober 1977 – 23 April 1978
League champions
WinnersDublin (5th win)
CaptainTony Hanahoe
ManagerTony Hanahoe
League runners-up
Runners-upMayo
CaptainJohn P Keane[1]
ManagerJohnny Carey


The 1977–78 National Football League was the 47th staging of the National Football League (NFL), an annual Gaelic football tournament for the Gaelic Athletic Association county teams of Ireland.

Dublin beat Mayo in the final.[2][3][4]

Format[edit]

Group stage[edit]

Division One (North)[edit]

Table[edit]

Team Pld W D L Pts Notes
Mayo 5 4 1 0 9 Qualified for Knockout Stages
Cavan 5 3 0 2 6
Roscommon 5 2 1 2 5
Tyrone 5 2 1 2 5
Antrim 5 1 1 3 3
Derry 5 1 0 4 2 Relegated to Division Two of the 1978–79 NFL

[5]

Division One (South)[edit]

Table[edit]

Team Pld W D L Pts Notes
Dublin 5 5 0 0 10 Qualified for Knockout Stages
Kildare 5 3 1 1 7
Cork 5 2 0 3 4
Galway 5 2 0 3 4
Kerry 5 1 1 3 3
Offaly 5 1 0 4 2 Relegated to Division Two of the 1978–79 NFL

Division Two (North)[edit]

Group A play-offs[edit]

22 January 1978 For 1st Place Armagh 2-9 — 2-7 Down Castleblaney
29 January 1978 For 2nd Place Down 1-11 — 0-5 Louth Castleblaney

Group B play-offs[edit]

22 January 1978 For 1st Place Donegal 0-13 — 0-10 Fermanagh Ballybofey

Inter-group play-offs[edit]

5 February 1978 Semi-Final Armagh 2-7 — 0-7 Fermanagh Omagh
5 February 1978 Semi-Final Down 3-9 — 1-6 Donegal Dungannon
19 February 1978 Final Down 2-7 — 1-3 Armagh Castleblaney

Group A Table[edit]

Team Pld W D L Pts Notes
Armagh 4 3 0 1 6
Down 4 3 0 1 6 Qualified for Knockout Stages; promoted to Division One of the 1978–79 NFL
Louth 4 3 0 1 6
Westmeath 4 1 0 3 2
Antrim 4 0 0 4 0

Group B Table[edit]

Team Pld W D L Pts Notes
Donegal 4 3 0 1 6
Fermanagh 4 3 0 1 6
Leitrim 4 2 0 2 4
Sligo 4 2 0 2 4
Longford 4 0 0 4 0

Division Two (South)[edit]

Group A play-offs[edit]

22 January 1978 For 1st Place Laois 4-8 — 1-12 Meath Tullamore
E Whelan 2-1, L Scully 1-2, W Brennan 1-1, B Bohane 0-3, Tom Prendergast 0-1 Mick Fay 0-6, Fergus Fagan 1-1, Cormac Roe 0-2, O O'Brien, P Cromwell, Gerry McEntee 0-1 each Referee: Johnny Geraghty (Galway)

Group B play-offs[edit]

29 January 1978 Wicklow 3-5 — 2-7 Carlow Athy

Inter-group play-offs[edit]

5 February 1978 Semi-Final Wexford 3-10 — 1-7 Meath Newbridge
5 February 1978 Semi-Final Laois 4-16 — 1-7 Wicklow Athy
Tom Prendergast 3-5, W Brennan 1-4, S Allen 0-3, E Whelan 0-2, B Bohane, F Hennessy 0-1 each Referee: Martin Meally (Kilkenny)
5 March 1978 Final Laois 1-12 — 1-6 Wexford Carlow
Tom Prendergast 1-2, Billy Bohane 0-5, Willie Brennan, Colm Browne 0-2 each, Liam Scully 0-1 Attendance: 12,000
Referee: Denis Guerin (Dublin)

Group A Table[edit]

Team Pld W D L Pts Notes
Laois 4 3 0 1 6 Qualified for Knockout Stages; promoted to Division One of the 1978–79 NFL
Meath 4 3 0 1 6
Tipperary 4 2 0 2 4
Clare 4 2 0 2 4
Limerick 4 0 0 4 0

Group B Table[edit]

Team Pld W D L Pts Notes
Wexford 4 4 0 0 8
Carlow 4 3 0 1 6
Wicklow 4 2 0 2 4
Waterford 4 1 0 3 2
Kilkenny 4 0 0 4 0

Knockout stage[edit]

Quarter-finals[edit]

Laois4-9 – 2-10Cavan
Tom Prendergast 2-1 Willie Brennan 0-5, Mick Moore 1-1, Stevie Allen 1-0, John Costello. Eamonn Whelan 0-1 each
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: P Gorman (Sligo)

DownD – DKildare

Down1-15 – 1-11
a.e.t.
Kildare

Semi-finals[edit]

Dublin0-12 – 0-7Laois
Bobby Doyle 0-3, Brian Mullins, Anton O'Toole 0-2 each, Tommy Drumm, Bernard Brogan, David Hickey, Fran Ryder, Pat O'Neill 0-1 each W Brennan 0-3, L Scully, S Allen, B Bohane, T Prendergast 0-1 each
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Seamus Murray (Monaghan)

Down0-8 – 0-10Mayo

Final[edit]

Dublin2-18 – 2-13Mayo
Attendance: 39,623[6]
Referee: Jimmy Dennigan (Cork)[7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "For The Record, A History of the National Football and Hurling League Finals", Tom Morrison, Collins Press, 2002, ISBN 9781903464151
  2. ^ GAA Final Teams
  3. ^ Mayo Archive 1978
  4. ^ "059 Dubs 1978 | a whole new world". Archived from the original on 19 December 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  5. ^ "GAA Results and Tables", Irish Independent, 5 December 1977, p. 11
  6. ^ "For The Record, A History of the National Football and Hurling League Finals", Tom Morrison, Collins Press, 2002, ISBN 9781903464151
  7. ^ "For The Record, A History of the National Football and Hurling League Finals", Tom Morrison, Collins Press, 2002, ISBN 9781903464151