Blast from the Past – Part 1 – Senior League

This is the first in a series of snippets compiled by Seán Ó Súilleabháin for our website. We begin by looking back to 1931 and the origins of the Senior Football League in Leitrim.

The biggest problem when compiling a list under this heading is deciding what counts as a “League”. Is it a league-based competition (as distinct from knock-out), or the subsidiary competition run by the County Board after the Senior Championship? Complicating matters further, the Senior Championship itself was run on a league basis from 1910–1919 and again from the late 1920s until 1946 (with a couple of exceptions).

From 1931 onwards, the County Board ran a second competition most years (except in 1941 and 1942). This second competition was often called the “League” or “League Cup”, even though it usually ran on a knock-out basis. The Canon Masterson Cup (also known as the Breffni Cup) from 1939–1945 was regularly referred to as the League Cup.

For historical accuracy here, the Senior League is considered a competition run on a points system, as it has been since 1946. Prior to this, the only years that had a strict league competition were 1931, 1934 and 1940. Other Cup competitions are also listed below for completeness.

Early Cups

  • Martin Cup: 1932 Fenagh; 1933 Cloone; 1934 Cloone
  • Murray Cup: 1935 Cloone
  • Lynch Cup: 1936 Ballinamore; 1937 Cloone; 1938 Ballinamore
  • Breffni Cup: 1939 Aughavas; 1940 Cloone
  • Masterson Cup: 1943 Bornacoola; 1944 Tully; 1945 Ballinamore

Senior League — Year, Winners, Runners-up

    • 1931 — Fenagh
    • 1934 — Cloone
    • 1946 — Carrick-on-Shannon — Ballinamore
    • 1947 — Carrick-on-Shannon
    • 1948 — Cloone (see note*)
    • 1949 — Cloone — Ballinamore
    • 1950 — Aughavas (see note**)
    • 1951 — Eslin (Mohill/Eslin) — Aughavas
    • 1952 — Cloone — Carrigallen
    • 1953 — Cloone — Drumreilly
    • 1954 — Aughavas — Bornacoola
    • 1955 — Abandoned
    • 1956 — Bornacoola — Aughavas
    • 1957 — Bornacoola — Aughavas
    • 1958 — Melvin Gaels — Bornacoola
    • 1959 — Melvin Gaels — Aughavas
    • 1960 — Carrick-on-Shannon — Melvin Gaels
    • 1961 — Melvin Gaels
    • 1962 — Melvin Gaels
    • 1963 — Cloone — Melvin Gaels
    • 1964 — Carrick-on-Shannon 4-6 — Aughavas 0-4 (see note***)
    • 1965 — Melvin Gaels — Ballinamore
    • 1966 — Melvin Gaels — Ballinamore
    • 1967 — Ballinamore — Drumkeerin
    • 1968 — Ballinamore 2-4 — Aughnasheelin 2-2
    • 1969 — Aughnasheelin — Ballinamore
    • 1970 — Ballinamore — Allen Gaels
    • 1971 — Ballinamore — Gortletteragh
    • 1972 — Ballinamore — Gortletteragh
    • 1973 — Allen Gaels 1-7 — Ballinamore 1-6
    • 1974 — Allen Gaels — Ballinamore (see note†)
    • 1975 — Allen Gaels — Ballinamore
    • 1976 — Glencar/Manor — Allen Gaels
    • 1977 — Ballinamore — Allen Gaels
    • 1978 — Ballinamore — Glencar/Manor
    • 1979 — Ballinamore — Glencar/Manor
    • 1980 — Ballinamore — Gortletteragh
    • 1981 — Aughawillan — Ballinamore
    • 1982 — Ballinamore — Aughawillan
    • 1983 — Aughawillan — Carrick-on-Shannon
    • 1984 — Gortletteragh — Aughawillan
    • 1985 — Gortletteragh 1-8 — Aughawillan 0-6
    • 1986 — Aughawillan 2-5 — Ballinamore 0-8 (drawn game: Aughawillan 1-4 — Ballinamore 0-7)
    • 1987 — Aughawillan 1-8 — Fenagh 1-4
    • 1988 — Ballinamore 0-7 — Aughawillan 0-2
    • 1989 — Ballinamore 3-5 — Aughawillan 1-8
    • 1990 — Aughawillan 1-13 — Ballinamore 1-7 (played 1991)
    • 1991 — St Mary’s 1-11 — Aughawillan 0-8 (played 29/3/1992)
    • 1992 — St Mary’s 1-10 — Aughawillan 0-11 (played 24/2/1993)
    • 1993 — Gortletteragh 0-10 — Ballinamore 0-7
    • 1994 — Allen Gaels 1-11 — Gortletteragh 0-8 (played 1995)
    • 1995 — Gortletteragh 2-10 — Allen Gaels 1-8 (played 31/3/1996)
    • 1996 — Aughavas 3-9 — Glencar/Manor 0-10
    • 1997 — Allen Gaels 4-2 — Gortletteragh 0-6
    • 1998 — Glencar/Manor 0-11 — St Mary’s 2-4 (played 1999)
    • 1999 — Fenagh 2-9 — St Mary’s 1-8 (played 17/3/2000)
    • 2000 — Aughavas 0-8 — Allen Gaels 1-4
    • 2001 — Fenagh 0-12 — Glencar/Manor 0-11
    • 2002 — St Mary’s 1-5 — Glencar/Manor 0-4
    • 2003 — Drumreilly 2-10 — Bornacoola 1-4
    • 2004 — Annaduff 1-9 — Allen Gaels 1-5
    • 2005 — St Mary’s — Annaduff
    • 2006 – Kiltubrid – Allen Gaels
    • 2007 – St Marys Kilt – Melvin Gaels
    • 2008 – Melvin Gaels – Glencar-Manor
    • 2009 – Glencar-Manor – Kiltubrid
    • 2010 – Glencar-Manor – Annaduff

      More Recent Results are here:    Adult   |    Underage    |     County   

Notes

  • * 1948: Played on a league system; Cloone confirmed as winners in County Board minutes of 3 Dec 1948.
  • ** 1950: Minutes of County Board meeting on 15 Dec 1950 awarded the title to Aughavas after Ballinamore conceded points to Aughavas, likely in the final league game (no final as such).
  • *** 1964: Final played on 20/2/1966.
  • † 1974: No final — direct league system.

Senior League Division 1B

Run as a separate competition from Division 1A in these years.

  • 2004 — Kiltubrid 1-11 — Glencar/Manor 0-8

Originally compiled 14 Feb 2006 by Seán Ó Súilleabháin; web format updated for clarity.