The 1985–86 National Football League, known for sponsorship reasons as the Ford National Football League, was the 55th staging of the National Football League (NFL), an annual Gaelic football tournament for the Gaelic Athletic Association county teams of Ireland.
| League details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | October 1985 – 4 May 1986 |
| League champions | |
| Winners | Laois (2nd win) |
| Captain | Colm Browne |
| Manager | Kieran Brennan |
| League runners-up | |
| Runners-up | Monaghan |
| Captain | Eugene Sherry |
← 1984–85 1986–87 → | |
Laois won their second title to bridge a sixty-year gap.[1][2][3]
Format edit
1985-86 saw a change in format of the National League. Divisions Three and Four were amalgamated into a new Division Three, which was split by region.[4]
Divisions edit
- Division One: 8 teams
- Division Two: 8 teams
- Division Three: 16 teams. Split into two regional groups of 8 (North and South)
Round-robin format edit
Each team played every other team in its division (or group where the division is split) once, either home or away.
Points awarded edit
2 points were awarded for a win and 1 for a draw.
Titles edit
Teams in all three divisions competed for the National Football League title.
Knockout stage qualifiers edit
- Division One: top 4 teams
- Division Two: top 2 teams
- Division Three (North): group winners
- Division Three (South): group winners
Knockout phase structure edit
In the quarter-finals, the match-ups were as follows:
- Quarter-final 1: First-placed team in Division One v First-placed team in Division Three (South)
- Quarter-final 2: Second-placed team in Division One v First-placed team in Division Three (North)
- Quarter-final 3: Third-placed team in Division One v Second-placed team in Division Two
- Quarter-final 4: Fourth-placed team in Division One v First-placed team in Division Two
The semi-final match-ups are:
- Semi-final 1: Winner Quarter-final 1 v Winner Quarter-final 4
- Semi-final 2: Winner Quarter-final 2 v Winner Quarter-final 3
The final match-up is: Winner Semi-final 1 v Winner Semi-final 2.
Promotion and relegation edit
- Division One: bottom 2 teams demoted to Division Two
- Division Two: top 2 teams promoted to Division One. Bottom 2 teams demoted to Division Three.
- Division Three (North): group winners promoted to Division Two.
- Division Three (South): group winners promoted to Division Two.
Separation of teams on equal points edit
In the event that teams finish on equal points, then a play-off will be used to determine group placings if necessary, i.e. where to decide relegation places or quarter-finalists.
League Tables edit
Division One edit
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Down
|
7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 13 | Advance to quarter-finals |
 Monaghan
|
7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 11 | |
 Meath
|
7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 9 | |
 Armagh
|
7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 | |
| Kerry
|
7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 6 | |
 Roscommon
|
7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | |
 Kildare
|
7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | Relegated to Division Two of the 1986–87 NFL |
 Tyrone
|
7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
Division Two edit
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Mayo
|
7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 11 | Advance to quarter-finals; promoted to Division One of the 1986–87 NFL |
 Dublin
|
7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | |
| Donegal
|
7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 9 | |
 Cork
|
7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 9 | |
 Cavan
|
7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | |
| Longford
|
7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 6 | |
 Galway
|
7 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | Relegated to Division Three of the 1986–87 NFL |
 Wexford
|
7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
Division Three edit
Division Three (North) table edit
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Derry
|
7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 12 | Advance to quarter-finals; promoted to Division Two of the 1986–87 NFL |
| Louth
|
7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | |
 Offaly
|
7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | |
 Antrim
|
7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 9 | |
 Sligo
|
7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 8 | |
| Leitrim
|
7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | |
 Fermanagh
|
7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | |
| Westmeath
|
7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
Division Three (South) table edit
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laois
|
7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 13 | Advance to quarter-finals; promoted to Division Two of the 1986–87 NFL |
 Carlow
|
7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 10 | |
| Wicklow
|
7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 8 | |
| Limerick
|
7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 8 | |
 Clare
|
7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | |
| Tipperary
|
7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | |
| Waterford
|
7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | |
 Kilkenny
|
7 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
Knockout stages edit
Quarter-finals edit
Semi-finals edit
Final edit
| Laois | 2-6 – 2-5 | Monaghan |
|---|---|---|
| Liam Irwin 0-6, Willie Brennan 1-0, Eamonn Whelan 1-0[11] |
References edit
- ^ GAA Final Teams
- ^ "Laois G.A.A. History 1947 - 1999". Archived from the original on 14 April 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
- ^ GAA Archive 1986[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Football League's new Div 3, North and South", Sunday Independent,25 August 1985, p.24
- ^ "Your GAA Scoreboard", Irish Independent 03/03/1986, p. 11
- ^ "Mayo soon sort out enigmatic Armagh!". Irish Independent, 31/03/1986, p. 9
- ^ "Meath fail to break brave Dublin resolve". Irish Independent, 31/03/1986, p. 9
- ^ "Laois in on merit!". Irish Independent, 07/04/1986, p. 10
- ^ "Monaghan unimpressive, but...". Irish Independent, 07/04/1986, p. 10
- ^ "Talented Laois shock hotly-fancied Dublin". Irish Independent, 21/04/1986, p. 12
- ^ "For The Record, A History of the National Football and Hurling League Finals", Tom Morrisson, Collins Press, 2002, ISBN 9781903464151
- ^ "For The Record, A History of the National Football and Hurling League Finals", Tom Morrisson, Collins Press, 2002, ISBN 9781903464151
- ^ "For The Record, A History of the National Football and Hurling League Finals", Tom Morrisson, Collins Press, 2002, ISBN 9781903464151