Blast from the Past – Part 1 – Senior League
This is the first in a series of snippets of information compiled by Sean ? Suilleabh?in for our website – This info will be available on a regular basis and when completed will appear in an archive section of the website. Many thanks to Seans very hard work in compiling this info. We start the series by looking back to 1931 and beginnings of the Senior Football League in Leitrim. – Brendan, PRO
[b]SENIOR FOOTBALL LEAGUE[/b] by Sean ? Suilleabh?in
The biggest problem is compiling a list under this heading, is trying to decide what is a League? Is it a league based competition as distinct from a knock-out one, or is it the subsidiary competition run by the County Board, that comes next in importance after the Senior Championship. What complicated matters in Leitrim is the Senior Championship was run on a league basis from 1910-1919 and again from the end of the twenties until 1946, except for a couple of years.
However, from 1931 onwards, the County Baord ran a second competition every year, except in 1941 and 1942, and this second competition was often referred to as the League or League Cup, even though it was usually run 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 the sake of historical accuracy, I am considering the Senior League to be 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. The other Cup Competitions are also listed.
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
[b]Year – Winners —– Runner-up[/b]
1931 – Fenagh
1934 – Cloone
1946 – Carrick on Shannon —– Ballinamore
1947 – Carrick on Shannon
*1948 – Cloone *
1949 – Cloone —– Ballinamore
*1950 – Aughavas (See Co Board Minutes)
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*
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
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
DrawnÓgame 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 in 1991
1991 – St Marys 1-11 —– Aughawillan 0-8
Played 29/3/1992
1992 – St Marys 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 in 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 Marys 2-4
Played 1999
1999 – Fenagh 2-9 —– St Marys 1-8
Played 17/3/2000
2000 – Aughavas 0-8 —– Allen Gaels 1-4
2001 – Fenagh 0-12 —– Glencar /Manor 0-11
2002 – St Marys 1-5 —– Glencar /Manor 0-4
2003 – Drumreilly 2-10 —– Bornacoola 1-4
2004 – Annaduff 1-9 —– Allen Gaels 1-5
2005 – St Marys —– Annaduff
*1948 Played on League system. Cloone confirmed winners, in County Board minutes of 3 Dec 1948
*1950 Minutes of Co Board meeting of 15 Dec 1950 awarded title to Aughavas after Ballinamore conceded points to Aughavas, in what was possibly a final league game with no final as such.
*1964 Final played on 20/2/1966
*1974 No Final direct League system.
[b]Senior League Div 1 B[/b]
Run as separate competition from Div 1A those years
2004 Kiltubrid 1-11 —– Glencar/Manor 0-8
14-Feb-06 by Compliled by Sean O Suilleabhain, web format – PRO