2019 National Football League (Ireland)

The 2019 National Football League, known for sponsorship reasons as the Allianz National Football League, was the 88th staging of the National Football League (NFL), an annual Gaelic football tournament for Gaelic Athletic Association county teams. Thirty-one county teams from the island of Ireland, plus London, competed; Kilkenny do not participate.

2019 National Football League
League details
Dates26 January – 6 April 2019
Teams32
League champions
WinnersMayo (12th win)
CaptainDiarmuid O'Connor
ManagerJames Horan
League runners-up
Runners-upKerry
CaptainPaul Murphy
ManagerPeter Keane
Other division winners
Division 2Donegal
Division 3Westmeath
Division 4Derry
← 2018
2020 →

The GAA announced a new broadcast agreement on 10 January 2019, expected to run from 2019 until 2022. Eir Sport and RTÉ provided live TV coverage of the league on Saturday nights. TG4 broadcast Sunday afternoon games. The highlights programmes were RTÉ2's League Sunday on Sunday evenings, TG4's GAA 2019 on Monday evenings and Eir Sport's Allianz Leagues Reloaded on Wednesday evenings.[1][2]

Mayo were the winners, defeating Kerry in the final.[3]

Experimental Rules

On 24 November 2018 the GAA Central Council approved five experimental changes to the football playing rules which were amended slightly and trialled in the 2018–19 early season competitions organised by the four provincial councils (FBD League - Connacht, O'Byrne Cup - Leinster, McGrath Cup - Munster and McKenna Cup - Ulster).[4]

The rules trialled were[5] –

  1. The maximum number of consecutive handpasses allowed is three.
  2. A sideline free must be kicked forward except when it is inside the opposing team's 20 metre line.
  3. An advanced mark (sometimes also referred to as an attacking mark, inside mark or offensive mark) may be taken where the ball is kicked in the area outside the opposing team's 45 metre line, travels more than 20 metres, and is caught cleanly without touching the ground in the area inside the opposing team's 45 metre line by an attacker or a defender. Up to fifteen seconds are allowed for the free resulting from the mark to be taken.
  4. Ten minutes in a sin bin without replacement is imposed on a player who commits a black card offence. The offending player can re-enter the game or be substituted after the ten minutes have elapsed.
  5. Kickouts must be taken from the 20 metre line but are not required to travel beyond the 45 metre line.

The effectiveness of the new rules was reviewed by Central Council on 19 January 2019. Although one of the key aims of the experiment was to reduce the number of handpasses in gaelic football, they voted 25-23 to not continue with the rule that restricted the number of consecutive handpasses to three (which was previously trialled in the 1989 National Football League and quickly abandoned[6]). This decision followed an almost universal campaign by GAA county team managers in the media against its permanent introduction[7] The Gaelic Players Association (GPA) were also strongly against the three handpass rule.[8]

Experimental rules 2 to 5 (see above) were trialled in the 2019 National Football League, beginning on 26 January 2019 and ending on 31 March 2019. There was little criticism of the four rules in the league games though Jim Gavin, the Dublin manager, said the decision to experiment in the league, the GAA's second tier inter-county competition, was "disrespectful".[9]

GAA rules only allow changes to the playing rules in years divisible by five which means that, at the earliest, the experimental playing rules could only be approved by Congress 2020 for implementation in the 2020 Championship.[10]

A Special Congress was held on 19 October 2019.[11] Three rules were passed and were introduced beginning in 2020 –

  • The Advanced Mark (passed by 68.9%)
  • The Sin Bin (passed by 73.8%)
  • Kick-outs from the centre of the 20m line (passed by 83.1%)

Competition format

League structure

The 2019 National Football League consists of four divisions of eight teams. Each team plays every other team in its division once, usually four home and three away or three home and four away. Two points are awarded for a win and one point for a draw.

Teams by Province and Division
ProvinceDivision 1Division 2Division 3Division 4Total
Connacht30115
Leinster126211
Munster13026
Ulster33129
Britain00011
Total888832

Tie-breaker

If only two teams are level on league points -

  • The team that won the head-to-head match is ranked first
  • If this game was a draw, score difference (total scored minus total conceded in all games) is used to rank the teams
  • If score difference is identical, total scored is used to rank the teams
  • If still identical, a play-off is required

If three or more teams are level on league points, score difference is used to rank the teams.

Finals, promotions and relegations

Division 1

The top two teams in Division 1 contest the National Football League final. The bottom two teams are relegated to Division 2.

Division 2, Division 3 & Division 4

The top two teams in Divisions 2, 3 and 4 are promoted and contest the finals of their respective divisions. The bottom two teams in Divisions 2 and 3 are relegated.

Division 1

Division 1 Table
Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1 Kerry 7 6 0 1 113 92 +21 12 Advance to Division 1 Final
2 Mayo 7 5 0 2 102 92 +10 10
3 Tyrone 7 4 1 2 108 95 +13 9
4 Dublin 7 4 0 3 122 99 +23 8
5 Galway 7 4 0 3 95 103 −8 8
6 Monaghan 7 2 0 5 103 114 −11 4
7 Roscommon 7 1 1 5 92 121 −29 3 Relegation to 2020 NFL Division 2
8 Cavan 7 1 0 6 90 109 −19 2
Updated to match(es) played on 1 April 2019. Source: GAA.ie
Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where two teams only are involved – the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the League; 3) Score difference – subtracting the total scores against from the scores for; 4) Highest total score for; 5) Highest total goals for; 6) A play-off.

Division 1 Rounds 1 to 7


Division 1 Round 1


Division 1 Round 2


Division 1 Round 3


Division 1 Round 4


Division 1 Round 5


Division 1 Round 6


Division 1 Round 7


Division 1 Final
31 March 2019 (2019-03-31)
16:00 IST (UTC+1)
Final
Kerry 2-10 (16) – (20) 3-11 Mayo
Croke Park, Dublin
Referee: Fergal Kelly (Longford)

Division 2

Division 2 Table
Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Meath 7 6 0 1 111 84 +27 12 Advance to Division 2 Final
2 Donegal 7 5 0 2 112 94 +18 10
3 Fermanagh 7 3 2 2 69 74 −5 8
4 Kildare 7 3 1 3 87 93 −6 7
5 Armagh 7 2 2 3 101 97 +4 6
6 Clare 7 2 1 4 107 113 −6 5
7 Cork 7 2 1 4 91 112 −21 5 Relegation to Division 3
8 Tipperary 7 1 1 5 99 110 −11 3
Updated to match(es) played on 1 April 2019. Source: GAA.ie
Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where two teams only are involved – the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the League; 3) Score difference – subtracting the total scores against from the scores for; 4) Highest total score for; 5) Highest total goals for; 6) A play-off.

Division 2 Rounds 1 to 7


Division 2 Round 1


Division 2 Round 2


Division 2 Round 3


Division 2 Round 4


Division 2 Round 5


Division 2 Round 6


Division 2 Round 7


Division 2 Final
30 March 2019 (2019-03-30)
17:00 IST (UTC+1)
Final
Meath 1-15 (18) – (20) 1-17 Donegal
Croke Park, Dublin
Referee: Derek O'Mahoney (Tipperary)

Division 3

Division 3 Table
Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Westmeath 7 4 2 1 99 84 +15 10 Advance to Division 3 Final
2 Laois 7 5 0 2 117 103 +14 10
3 Down 7 5 0 2 98 85 +13 10
4 Louth 7 4 1 2 108 88 +20 9
5 Longford 7 3 1 3 88 88 0 7
6 Offaly 7 2 1 4 89 99 −10 5
7 Carlow 7 2 1 4 90 94 −4 5 Relegation to Division 4
8 Sligo 7 0 0 7 92 140 −48 0
Updated to match(es) played on 1 April 2019. Source: GAA.ie
Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where two teams only are involved – the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the League; 3) Score difference – subtracting the total scores against from the scores for; 4) Highest total score for; 5) Highest total goals for; 6) A play-off.
  • Westmeath, Laois and Down are ranked by score difference.

Division 3 Rounds 1 to 7

Division 3 Round 1

Division 3 Round 2

Division 3 Round 3

Division 3 Round 4

Division 3 Round 5

Division 3 Round 6

Division 3 Round 7

Division 3 Final
6 April 2019 (2019-04-06)
4:45 pm
Final
Westmeath 1-13 (16) – (13) 0-13 Laois

Division 4

Division 4 Table
Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Derry 7 7 0 0 129 95 +34 14 Advance to Division 4 Final
2 Leitrim 7 6 0 1 119 94 +25 12
3 Antrim 7 3 0 4 100 90 +10 6
4 Waterford 7 3 0 4 91 97 −6 6
5 Wexford 7 3 0 4 105 114 −9 6
6 Wicklow 7 3 0 4 78 90 −12 6
7 Limerick 7 2 0 5 82 91 −9 4
8 London 7 1 0 6 71 89 −18 2
Updated to match(es) played on 1 April 2019. Source: GAA.ie
Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where two teams only are involved – the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the League; 3) Score difference – subtracting the total scores against from the scores for; 4) Highest total score for; 5) Highest total goals for; 6) A play-off.

Division 4 Rounds 1 to 7

Division 4 Round 1

Division 4 Round 2

Division 4 Round 3

Division 4 Round 4

Division 4 Round 5

Division 4 Round 6

Division 4 Round 7

Division 4 Final
30 March 2019 (2019-03-30)
3:00 pm
Final
Derry 0-20 (20) – (16) 0-16 Leitrim
Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 30,465

League statistics
  • All scores correct as of 16 April 2019[12]

Top Scorer: Overall
Rank Player County Tally Total Matches Average
1 Ger Egan Westmeath 3-50 59 8 7.4
2 Sean O'Shea Kerry 1-55 58 8 7.2
3 Evan O'Carroll Laois 1-41 44 8 5.5
4 Jonathan Bealin Wexford 0-42 42 7 6
5 Conor McManus Monaghan 0-41 41 7 5.9
6 Ryan O'Rourke Leitrim 4-28 40 7 5.7
7 Dean Rock Dublin 2-32 38 7 5.4
8 Mickey Newman Meath 1-33 36 8 4.5
Conor Sweeney Tipperary 2-30 36 7 5.1
10 David Tubridy Clare 3-26 35 7 5
11 Donal O'Hare Down 4-22 34 7 4.9
12 Peter Harte Tyrone 3-24 33 7 4.7
13 Bernard Allen Offaly 0-31 31 7 4.4
14 Ryan Murray Antrim 3-21 30 6 5

Top Scorer: Single game
Rank Player County Tally Total Opposition
1 Ryan O'Rourke Leitrim 2-07 13 Wexford
2 Sean O'Shea Kerry 0-12 12 Cavan
Conor Sweeney Tipperary 1-09 12 Clare
4 Shane McGuigan Derry 2-05 11 Leitrim
Donal O'Hare Down 3-02 11 Longford
6 Jonathan Bealin Wexford 0-10 10 Derry
David Tubridy Clare 1-07 10 Armagh
David Tubridy Clare 1-07 10 Cork
Ger Egan Westmeath 1-07 10 Laois
10 Ryan Bell Derry 0-09 9 Wexford
Dean Rock Dublin 0-09 9 Cavan
Ger Egan Westmeath 0-09 9 Carlow
Ger Egan Westmeath 0-09 9 Laois
Ger Egan Westmeath 0-09 9 Longford
Ross Munnelly Laois 1-06 9 Louth
Niall McNamee Offaly 1-06 9 Sligo
Peter Harte Tyrone 1-06 9 Monaghan
Ryan Burns Louth 2-03 9 Laois

Scoring Events

References
  1. "GAA, RTE and eir sport announce new broadcast agreement". www.hoganstand.com. Hogan Stand. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  2. https://www.sportsjoe.ie/gaa/how-the-2019-national-football-league-divisions-will-look-154934
  3. https://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2019/0331/1039716-second-half-goal-blitz-secures-league-title-for-mayo/
  4. "GAA agrees to trial a number of proposed rule changes in 2019 Football League". BBC Sport. 24 November 2018.
  5. "Experimental Rules" (PDF). antrim.gaa.ie. Antrim GAA. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  6. "Joe Brolly: 'Treat the disease, not the symptoms'". Independent.ie. Irish Independent. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  7. ""The managers have the GAA by the throat"". www.hoganstand.com. Hogan Stand. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  8. "GPA members oppose three of the five proposed football rule changes". The Irish Times. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  9. "Gavin unhappy with league being used to experiment". www.hoganstand.com. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  10. "Experimental rule changes proposed for Gaelic Football". www.gaa.ie. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  11. "New rules passed at Special Congress". www.hoganstand.com. Hogan Stand. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  12. "Results". Hogan Stand. 16 April 2019. Archived from the original on 20 March 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
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