The 2018 Connacht Senior Football Championship was the 119th installment of the annual Connacht Senior Football Championship organised by Connacht GAA. It is one of the four provincial competitions of the 2018 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. Unlike previous seasons, where the Connacht champions earned a place in the quarter-finals, this year's winners advanced to the new "All-Ireland Super 8s".[1]
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Year | 2018 |
| Trophy | J. J. Nestor Cup |
| Winners | |
| Champions | Galway (46th win) |
| Manager | Kevin Walsh |
| Captain | Damien Comer |
| Runners-up | |
| Runners-up | Roscommon |
| Manager | Kevin McStay |
| Captain | Conor Devaney |
| Other | |
| Top Scorer | Shane Walsh (Galway) 16 points (0-16) |
The draw for the Connacht Championship was made on 19 October 2017.[2] Details on dates for the fixtures were announced on 31 October 2017.[3]
The winners receive the J. J. Nestor Cup, named after J. J. Nestor of Quinaltagh, County Galway.[4] Galway were the winners of the championship, defeating Roscommon in the final.
Teams
editThe Connacht championship is contested by the five counties in the Irish province of Connacht plus London and New York. Sligo are the only team to come into the new season under a new manager, with Cathal Corey having replaced Niall Carew.[5] In December 2017, Corey appointed Kevin McDonnell as the new Sligo captain.[6] Roscommon and Galway likewise come into the competition under new captains. Kevin McStay appointed Conor Devaney in place of Ciaráin Murtagh during the winter break,[7] while Damien Comer was named as the new Tribesmen skipper for their league campaign, replacing Gary O'Donnell.[8] New York named Tom Cunniffe, a former All-Ireland finalist with Mayo, as their captain.[9]
| Team | Colours | Sponsor | Manager | Captain | Most recent success | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All-Ireland | Provincial | |||||
| Galway |  Maroon and white
|
Supermac's | Kevin Walsh | Damien Comer | ||
| Leitrim |  Green and gold
|
The Bush Hotel | Brendan Guckian | Donal Wrynn | ||
| London |  Green and white
|
Clayton Hotels | Ciarán Deely | Liam Gavaghan | ||
| Mayo |  Green and red
|
Elverys Sports | Stephen Rochford | Cillian O'Connor | ||
| New York |  Red, white and blue
|
Navillus Contracting | Justin O'Halloran | Tom Cunniffe | ||
| Roscommon |  Blue and yellow
|
Club Rossie | Kevin McStay | Conor Devaney | ||
| Sligo |  Black and white
|
AbbVie Inc. | Cathal Corey | Kevin McDonnell | ||
Bracket
edit| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||
| New York
| 1-15 | |||||||||||||
| Leitrim (a.e.t.)
| 0-19 | Leitrim
| 0-10 | |||||||||||
| Roscommon
| 0-24 | |||||||||||||
| Roscommon
| 2-06 | |||||||||||||
| London
| 1-11 | Galway
| 0-16 | |||||||||||
| Sligo
| 1-21 | Sligo
| 1-12 | |||||||||||
| Mayo
| 0-12 | Galway
| 4-24 | |||||||||||
| Galway
| 1-12 | |||||||||||||
Fixtures
editQuarter-finals
edit6 May 2018
3:30 pm Quarter-Final B |
| London
|
1-11 (14) – (24) 1-21 | Sligo
|
|---|---|---|
| (HT: 1-3 – 1-10) | ||
| Gls: A Marren 1 (pen) Pts: A Marren 6 (1f), C Henry 3, S Carrabine, S Coen, N Murphy 2 each, C Breheny, A Devaney (f), L Gaughan, P Hughes, E McHugh, P O’Connor 1 each |
Gls: F McMahon 1 Pts: L Gavaghan 5 (2f), L Irwin 2 (1f), R Elliott, M Gottsche, F McMahon, E Murray 1 each | |
| New York
|
1-15 (18) – (19) 0-19 (a.e.t.) |
Leitrim
|
|---|---|---|
| (HT: 1-5 – 0-9) | ||
| Gls: S Hogan 1 Pts: J Clarke 5, K O’Grady 3, T Donnelly 3, N Collins, D Culhane, L Kelly, D McKenna 1 each |
Pts: K Beirne 7, E Mulligan 3, R O’Rourke 2, S Quinn 2, M Plunkett, D Rooney, D McGovern, A Flynn, N Plunkett 1 each | |
13 May 2018
4:00 pm Quarter-Final C |
| Mayo
|
0-12 (12) – (15) 1-12 | Galway
|
|---|---|---|
| (HT: 0-6 – 0-7) | ||
Pts: C. Loftus 3 (3f), A. Moran 02, C. O’Connor 2 (1f), K. McLoughlin 2, D. O’Connor 1, K. Higgins 1, T. Parsons 1 |
Gls: J. Heaney 1 Pts: S. Walsh 3 (1f), D. Comer 2, B. McHugh 2 (2f), C. Duggan 2, T. Flynn 1, S. Armstrong 1, S. Kelly 1 | |
Semi-finals
edit26 May 2018
5:30 pm Semi-Final |
| Leitrim
|
0-10 (10) – (24) 0-24 | Roscommon
|
|---|---|---|
| (HT: 0-2 – 0-9) | ||
Pts: D Moran 3, D Rooney 2, K Beirne 2 (1f), R O’Rourke 1, E Mulligan 1 (’45), S Quinn 1 |
Pts: D Murtagh 5 (2f), C Cregg 4, C Murtagh 3 (1f), D Smith 2, E Smith 2, C Devaney 1, C Compton 1, N Kilroy 1, F Cregg 1, B Stack 1, S Killoran 1, J McManus 1, T O’Rourke 1 | |
3 June 2018
3:30 pm Semi-Final |
| Galway
|
4-24 (36) – (15) 1-12 | Sligo
|
|---|---|---|
| (HT: 1-15 – 0-6) | ||
| Gls: D Comer 2, I Burke 1, S Kelly 1 Pts: S Walsh 5 (1f), E Brannigan 3, B McHugh 3 (2f), D Comer 2, I Burke 2, S Kelly 2, J Heaney 2, P Cooke 2, P Sweeney 1, G O'Donnell 1, F Burke 1 |
Gls: K Cawley 1 Pts: A Marren 4 (1f), L Gaughan 3 (2f), K Cawley 2, N Murphy 2, P Hughes 1 | |
Final
edit| 17 June 2018 16:00 Connacht Final |
Roscommon
|
2-6 - 0-16 | Galway
|
Dr. Hyde Park, Roscommon Attendance: 18,864 Referee: David Coldrick (Meath) Man of the Match: Shane Walsh (Kilkerrin-Clonberne) |
| Diarmuid Murtagh 0-5 (0-2f), Ciaráin Murtagh and Conor Devaney (1-0 pen) 1-0 each, Donie Smith 0-1 | Report | Shane Walsh 0-8 (0-5f), Ian Burke 0-3, Damien Comer 0-2, Sean Kelly, Sean Armstrong, Adrian Varley 0-1 each |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Explained: How the football championship's new 'Super 8' quarter-final stage will work in 2018". Irish Independent. 25 February 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "2018 GAA Championship Draw: Recap". RTÉ Sport. 19 October 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "2018 Master Fixtures plan published". GAA. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "The Tuam Herald - Connemara, Clonfert and Dunmore links to the Dublin hurling team". The Tuam Herald. Archived from the original on 26 April 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
- ^ "Changing of the guard! 16 new managers getting set for the 2018 inter-county GAA season". The42. 25 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "Kevin McDonnell hopes to embark on another Sigerson adventure".
- ^ "Kilbride's Conor Devaney named Roscommon captain for the year ahead". The42. 9 December 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "Captain Comer leads the way for Galway in stunning top-flight triumph over Tyrone". The42. 28 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "'When the camera zoomed in on Lee Keegan crying on the pitch, it definitely did bring a lot of emotions'". The42. 6 May 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2018.