2024 Down county football team season

The following is a summary of Down county football team's 2024 season, which is its 121st year.

Down county football team
2024 season
ManagerConor Laverty
StadiumPáirc Esler, Newry
NFL D31st (Runner-up in final)
Tailteann CupWinners
Ulster SFCSemi-Final
Dr McKenna CupGroup stage
← 2023
2025 →

Competitions

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Down will compete in the pre-season McKenna Cup tournament, with the main season consisting of the National Football League Division 3, the Ulster Championship and either the All Ireland Senior Football Championship or the Tailteann Cup.

Dr McKenna Cup

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The draw for the 2024 Dr McKenna Cup took place on 14 December 2023. [1] [2]

Table

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Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Derry 2 2 0 0 28 23 +5 4 Advance to semi-final
2   Down 2 1 0 1 31 31 0 2
3   Cavan 2 0 0 2 31 36 −5 0
Source: Ulster GAA

Fixtures

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6 January 2024 Round 2 Derry   0–13 – 0–10   Down Derry
18:00 IWT (UTC) Shane McGuigan 0–3 (0–3f), Paul Cassidy 0–2, Conor Doherty 0–2, Niall Loughlin 0–2 (0–2f), Diarmuid Baker 0–1, Chrissy McKaigue 0–1, Gareth McKinless 0–1, Declan Cassidy 0–1 Report Pat Havern 0–3 (0–2f), Daniel Guinness 0–1, Odhran Murdock 0–1, Johnny Flynn 0–1, Ceilum Doherty 0–1, James Guinness 0–1, Liam Kerr 0–1 (0–1f), Andrew Gilmore 0–1 (0–1f) Stadium: Celtic Park
Referee: Enda McFeely
10 January 2024 Round 3 Down   2–15 – 1–15   Cavan Newry
19:30 IWT (UTC) Pat Havern 0–5, Rory Mason 1–1 (0–1f), Odhran Murdock 1–1, Oisin Savage 0–2, Pearse McCabe 0–1, Pierce Laverty 0–1, Gareth McKibben 0–1, Liam Kerr 0–1, Jack McCartan 0–1, Pól Quinn 0–1 Report Oisin Brady 0–7, Brían O'Connell 1–0, Paddy Lynch 0–3 (0–1f, 0–1 '45), James Galligan 0–1, Padraig Faulkner 0–1, Tiarnan Madden 0–1, James Smith 0–1, Jack Tully 0–1 Stadium: Páirc Esler
Referee: Diarmuid Boylan

National Football League Division 3

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Down will compete in Division Three of the National League in 2024. The fixtures were confirmed on 6 December 2023. [3] [4]

Fixtures

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  Win   Draw   Loss   Postponed/Cancelled

Date Round Home Score Away Ground Ref
Saturday 28 January Group Wicklow 0-13 v 0-18 Down Aughrim County Ground [5]
Saturday 3 February Group Down 3-16 v 0-09 Limerick Páirc Esler, Newry [6]
Sunday 18 February Group Antrim 1-06 v 1-15 Down Corrigan Park [7]
Saturday 24 February Group Down 4-12 v 2-14 Offaly Páirc Esler, Newry [8]
Sunday 3 March Group Down 2-17 v 1-08 Sligo Páirc Esler, Newry [9]
Sunday 17 March Group Westmeath 0-13 v 1-10 Down Cusack Park, Mullingar [10]
Sunday 24 March Group Down 3-15 v 1-10 Clare Páirc Esler, Newry [11]
Saturday 30 March Final Down 0-13 v 2-10 Westmeath Croke Park, Dublin [12]

Table

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Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Down 7 6 1 0 145 88 +57 13 Advance to NFL Division 3 Final and
promotion to 2025 NFL Division 2
2   Westmeath 7 5 1 1 95 83 +12 11
3   Clare 7 5 0 2 106 95 +11 10
4   Sligo 7 4 1 2 103 96 +7 9
5   Antrim 7 3 0 4 94 106 −12 6
6   Offaly 7 2 1 4 111 100 +11 5
7   Wicklow 7 1 0 6 78 126 −48 2 Relegation to 2025 NFL Division 4
8   Limerick 7 0 0 7 77 115 −38 0
Source: GAA.ie
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Reports

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Round 1
Wicklow  0-13 - 0-18Down  
Chris O’Brien (0-05), Kevin Quinn (0-04), Brian Nesbitt (0-03), JP Nolan (0-01) Report Pat Havern (0-05), Daniel Guinneas (0-04), Rory Mason (0-02), Pierce Laverty (0-01), Finn McElroy (0-01), Odhran Murdock (0-01), Liam Kerr (0-03), Oisin Savage (0-01)
Referee: A Coyne (Westmeath)
Round 2
Down  3-16 - 0-09Limerick  
Odhran Murdock (2-03), Pat Havern (0-05), Daniel Guinness (1-01), Liam Kerr (0-03), Shealan Johnston (0-02), Oisin Savage (0-01), Peter Fegan (0-01) Report Peter Nash (0-05), Cillian Fahy (0-02), Robbie Childs (0-01), Shane Costello (0-01)
Referee: J Henry (Mayo)
Round 3
Antrim  1-06 - 1-15Down  
Dominic McEnhill (0-03), Paddy McAleer (1-00), Michael Byrne (0-02), Joseph Finnegan (0-01) Report Pat Havern (0-06), Ceilum Doherty (1-01), James Guinness (0-02), Oisin Savage (0-02), Danny Magill (0-01), John O'Hare (0-01), Odhran Murdock (0-01), Liam Kerr (0-01)
Referee: E McFeely (Donegal)
Round 4
Down  4-12 - 2-14Offaly  
Pat Havern (0-06), Liam Kerr (2-00), Ryan Johnston (1-01), Odhran Murdock (1-01), Miceal Rooney (0-01), Caolan Mooney (0-01), Danny Magill (0-01), Ryan Magill (0-01) Report Jack Bryant (1-05), Keith O’Neill (1-02), Anton Sullivan (0-03), Dylan Hyland (0-02), Cathal Flynn (0-01), Jordan Hayes (0-01)
Referee: C Dourneen (Cavan)
Round 5
Down  2-17 - 1-08Sligo  
Pat Havern (0-07), Ceilum Doherty (1-02), James Guinness (1-01), Daniel Guinness (0-02), John O’Hare (0-01), Ryan McEvoy (0-01), Liam Kerr (0-01), Danny Magill (0-01), Oisin Savage (0-01) Report Sean Carrabine (0-04), Nathan Mullen (1-00), Patrick O’Connor (0-01), Alan McLaughlin (0-01), Cian Lally (0-01), Niall Murphy (0-01)
Referee: B Tiernan (Dublin)
Round 6
Westmeath  0-13 - 1-10Down  
R Forde (0-04), L Loughlin (0-03), M Whittaker (0-01), J Dolan (0-01), R Connellan (0-01), J Lynam (0-01), K Martin (0-01), R O’Toole (0-01) Report P Havern (0-04), D Guinness (1-00), D Magill (0-01), R Johnston (0-01), O Murdoch (0-01), J Guinness (0-01), R McEvoy (0-01), C Doherty (0-01)
Referee: J Molloy (Galway)
Round 7
Down  3-15 - 1-10Clare  
C Doherty (1-02), D Magill (1-02), P Havern (0-05), O Murdock (1-00, pen), L Kerr (0-03), D Guinness (0-01), R Johnston (0-01), M Rooney (0-01) Report C Downes (0-04), A Griffin (1-00), M McInerney (0-02), S Ryan (0-01), E McMahon (0-01), D Coughlan (0-01), D O’Donnell (0-01)
Referee: D Coldrick (Meath)
Final
Down  0-13 - 2-10Westmeath  
Pat Havern (0-07), Liam Kerr (0-03), Miceal Rooney (0-01), Oisin Savage (0-01), Odhran Murdock (0-01) Report Jonathan Lynam (2-00), Sam McCartan (0-04), Robbie Forde (0-03), David Lynch (0-01), Conor Dillon (0-01), Luke Loughlin (0-01)
Referee: B Tiernan (Dublin)

Ulster Senior Football Championship

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The draw for the 2024 Ulster Championship took place on 21 October 2023. [13] [14]

Fixtures

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Quarter Final
Down  0-13 v 0-09  Antrim
O Savage (0-03), D Guinness (0-02), R McEvoy (0-01), C Doherty (0-01), M Rooney (0-01), O Murdock (0-01), L Kerr (0-01), R Johnston (0-01), P Havern (0-01), S Annett (0-01) Report R McQuillan (0-03), R McCann (0-01), M Jordan (0-01), C Hand (0-01), P McBride (0-01), E McCabe (0-01), M Byrne (0-01)
Attendance: 5,429
Referee: B Cassidy (Derry)
Semi-Final
Armagh  0-13 v 2-06  Down
R Grugan (0-05), R O'Neill (0-03), A Forker (0-02), A Nugent (0-01), O O’Neill (0-01), J Duffy (0-01) Report R Magill (1-01), P Burns (1-00, og.), P Havern (0-02), R Johnston (0-01), D Guinness (0-01), D Magill (0-01)
Attendance: 12,116
Referee: L Devenney (Mayo)

Bracket

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Quarter-Finals Semi-Finals Final
  Down 0-13
  Antrim 0-09
  Down 2-06
  Armagh 0-13
  Fermanagh 0-09
  Armagh 3-11
  Armagh 0-20 (5)
  Donegal 0-20 (6)
  Derry 0-17
  Donegal 4-11
  Donegal 0-18
  Monaghan 1-12   Tyrone 0-16
  Cavan 3-12   Cavan 3-16
  Tyrone 1-23*

Tailteann Cup

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Due to their National League ranking and because they never progressed to the Ulster Championship final, Down will enter the Tailteann Cup in 2024 for the 3rd time. The draw for the 2024 competition was made on 30 April with Down being drawn into Group 4 with Offaly, Limerick and London. [15] Down proceeded onto a second Tailteann Cup final in a row against Laois on 13 July 2024 and went on to win the final by two points winning their first Tailteann Cup. [16]

Group B

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Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1   Down 3 3 0 0 78 41 +37 6 Advance to quarter-final
2   Limerick 3 2 0 1 45 41 +4 4 Advance to preliminary quarter-final
3   London 3 1 0 2 46 59 −13 2
4   Offaly 3 0 0 3 42 70 −28 0
Source: GAA

Knockout Stage

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Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
  Down 1-18
  Leitrim 1-11   Wicklow 0-12
  Wicklow 2-15   Down (a.e.t.) 1-20
  Sligo 2-15
  Sligo 2-20
  Limerick 1-18   Limerick 0-9
  Tipperary 1-10   Down 0-14
  Laois 2-06
  Kildare 0-12
  Laois 1-13   Laois 2-11
  New York 1-9   Laois 3-12
  Antrim 1-13
  Fermanagh 0-11
  Antrim 3-11   Antrim 1-11
  London 1-10

Fixtures

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Group Stage
Down  1-20 v 1-06  Limerick
D Guinness (1-00), P Havern (0-03), E Brown (0-03), R McEvoy (0-01), P Fegan (0-01), O Murdock (0-02), J McGovern (0-02), G McKibben (0-02), G McKibben (0-02), D Magill (0-01), R Johnston (0-01), R McEvoy (0-01), P Fegan (0-01) Report P Nash (1-04), J Naughton (0-02)
Referee: C Dourneen (Cavan)
Group Stage
London  0-10 v 1-24  Down
Ciaran Diver (0-05), Shay Rafter (0-02), Tighe Barry (0-01), Joshua Obahor (0-01), Ruairi Rafferty (0-01) Report Patrick Havern (0-06), Daniel Guinness (0-06), Miceal Rooney (0-05), Odhran Murdock (1-01), Danny McGill (0-02), Conor McCrickard (0-01), Gareth McKibben (0-01), Ryan McEvoy (0-01), Ryan Magill (0-01)
Referee: B Tiernan (Dublin)
Group Stage
Down  2-22 v 3-13  Offaly
Paul Quinn (0-4), Oisin Savage (1-0), Ryan Magill (1-0), Conor McCrickard (0-3), Danny Magill (0-2), Shane Annett (0-2), James Guinness (0-2), Gareth McKibben (0-2), Shealan Johnston (0-1), Rory Mason (0-1), Ben McConville (0-1), Miceal Rooney (0-1), Caolan Mooney (0-1), Jack McCartan (0-1), Paddy McCarthy (0-1) Report Nigel Dunne (0-4), Daire McDaid (1-1), John Furlong (1-0), Cormac Egan (1-0), Keith O'Neill (0-2), Jack Bryant (0-2), David Dempsey (0-1), Lee Pearson (0-1), Cathal Flynn (0-1), Jordan Hayes (0-1)
Referee: K Eannatta (Tyrone)
Quarter-final
Down  1-18 v 0-12  Wicklow
P Havern (0-06), S Johnston (0-04), J McGovern (1-00), D Guinness (0-02), L Kerr (0-02), R McEvoy (0-01), D Magill (0-01), O Savage (0-01), C Doherty (0-01) Report K Quinn (0-04), M Jackson (0-03), C O'Brien (0-02), P O'Keane (0-01), O McGreynor (0-01), P O'Toole (0-01)
Referee: F Kelly (Longford)
Semi-final
Down  1-20 v 2-15 (a.e.t.)  Sligo
Pat Havern (0-07), Odhran Murdock (1-00), Liam Kerr (0-03), Ryan McEvoy (0-02), Pierce Laverty (0-02), Shealan Johnston (0-01), Daniel Guinness (0-01), Miceal Rooney (0-01), John McGovern (0-01), Caolan Mooney (0-01), Danny Magill (0-01) Report Sean Carrabine (0-04), Patrick O'Connor (1-01), Canice Mulligan (1-00), Niall Murphy (0-03), Lee Deignan (0-02), Darragh Cummins (0-02), Eddie McGuinness (0-01), Nathan Mullen (0-01), Mark Walsh (0-01)
Referee: D O Mahoney (Tipperary)
Final
Down  0-14 v 2-06  Laois
Odhran Murdock (0-03), Pat Havern (0-03), Danny Magill (0-02), Caolan Mooney (0-01), Jonny Flynn (0-01), Liam Kerr (0-01), Ryan Johnston (0-01), Peter Fegan (0-01), Shealan Johnston (0-01) Report Mark Barry (1-02), Seamus Lacey (1-00), Evan O'Carroll (0-01), Paul Kingston (0-01), Conor Heffernan (0-01), Killian Roche (0-01)
Referee: B Griffin (Kerry)

References

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  1. ^ "2024 Bank of Ireland Dr McKenna Cup fixtures confirmed". Ulster GAA. 14 December 2023.
  2. ^ "2024 Dr McKenna Cup fixtures: Mickey Harte to make Derry managerial debut against Cavan". Belfast Live. 14 December 2023.
  3. ^ "Allianz Football League fixtures confirmed for Armagh and Down". Newry Reporter. 6 December 2023.
  4. ^ "Your complete guide to the 2024 GAA inter-county fixtures list". Irish Independent. 6 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Down start league in style with victory over Wicklow". RTE. 28 January 2024.
  6. ^ "Odhran Murdock on the double as indisciplined Limerick pay penalty against Down". RTE. 3 February 2024.
  7. ^ "Down notch another win as Antrim challenge fades". RTE. 19 February 2024.
  8. ^ "Kerr double helps lead Down past Offaly in goalfest". RTE. 24 February 2024.
  9. ^ "Down extend winning streak as Sligo put to the sword". RTE. 2 March 2024.
  10. ^ "Division 3 high-fliers Westmeath and Down draw". RTE. 18 March 2024.
  11. ^ "Down seal place in Division 2 as final beckons". RTE. 24 March 2024.
  12. ^ "McCartan masterclass seals Westmeath's Division 3 title". RTE. 30 March 2024.
  13. ^ "2024 Ulster Senior Football Championship Draw". Ulster GAA. 21 October 2023.
  14. ^ "Ulster SFC draw pairs Jim McGuinness against Mickey Harte". RTE. 21 October 2023.
  15. ^ "2024 Tailteann Cup draw". GAA.ie. 30 April 2024.
  16. ^ "Down survive late Laois rally to win Tailteann Cup". RTE. 13 July 2024.