1925–26 National Football League (Ireland)


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.

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 for a gold medal, but this does not seem to have formed part of the league proper.

Knockout stage qualifiers

Connacht ([Connacht Railway Cup])

Results

Leinster I

Results

Table

Leinster II

Results

Table

Westmeath forfeited the points from their win v Offaly due to being late on the field

Leinster III

Results

Table

Munster ([Munster Football League])

Won by.

Ulster ([Dr McKenna Cup])

North-West Group

Regulation games
Play-Offs

North-East Group

Regulation games
Play-Offs

Final

Final standings

North-West Group
North-East Group

Knockout stage

Quarter-Finals

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Semi-Finals

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An objection was successfully made and a replay ordered.
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Final

Leinster League Inter-group Ties

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.