1973 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

The 1973 All-Ireland Football Championship was the 87th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county Gaelic football tournament. The championship began on 13 May 1973 and ended on 23 September 1973.

1973 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

Championship details
Dates	13 May – 23 September 1973
Teams	31
All-Ireland Champions
Winning team	Cork (4th win)
Captain	Billy Morgan
All-Ireland Finalists
Losing team	Galway
Captain	Liam Sammon
Provincial Champions
Munster	Cork
Leinster	Offaly
Ulster	Tyrone
Connacht	Galway
Championship statistics
No. matches played	31
Top Scorer	Tony McTague (1-25)
Player of the Year	Billy Morgan
← 1972 1974 →

Offaly were the defending champions but were defeated by Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final.

On 23 September 1973, Cork won the championship following a 3-17 to 2-13 defeat of Galway in the All-Ireland final. This was their 4th All-Ireland title, their first in 28 championship seasons.

Offaly's Tony McTague was the championship's top scorer with 1-25. Cork's Billy Morgan was the choice for Texaco Footballer of the Year.

Results

Connacht Senior Football Championship

Quarter-final

Galway v Sligo

10 June 1973 Quarter-final	Galway	3–6 – 1–9	Sligo	Tuam Stadium, Tuam
	M Rooney 1-1, J Coughlan 1-1, L Sammon 1-0, J Tobin 0-3, M Burke 0-1.		M Kearins 0-5, PJ Brennan 1-0, D Pugh 0-2, J Stenson 0-1, P Kearins 0-1.	Attendance: 15,000 Referee: P Devlin (Tyrone)

Semi-finals

Leitrim v Mayo

17 June 1973 Semi-final	Leitrim	0-3 - 7-6	Mayo	Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada, Carrick-on-Shannon
	B Wrynne 0-2, S Flanagan 0-1.		W McGee 3-0, T O'Malley 2-2, J Gibbons 1-1, M Gannon 1-0, S Gilbride 0-2, J Morley 0-1.	Referee: J Lee (Sligo)

Roscommon v Galway

24 June 1973 Semi-final	Roscommon	1–8 – 1–13	Galway	Dr. Hyde Park, Roscommon
	M Freyne 1-2, T Heneghan 0-4, J O'Gara 0-1, J Kelly 0-1.		J Tobin 0-5, J Caughlan 1-1, L Sammon 0-4, W Joyce 0-1, L O'Neill 0-1, J Duggan 0-1.	Referee: P Devlin (Tyrone)

Final

Mayo v Galway

8 July 1973 Final	Mayo	2-12 - 1-17	Galway	MacHale Park, Castlebar
	S Gilbride 0-5, J Morley 1-0, M Gannon 1-0, J Corcoran 0-3, T O'Malley 0-2, F Burns 0-1, W McGee 0-1,		M Rooney 1-2, J Tobin 0-5, M Burke 0-3, T Naughten 0-3, L Sammon 0-2, J Caughlan 0-2.	Attendance: 30,000 Referee: P Devlin (Tyrone)

Leinster Senior Football Championship

First round

Louth v Carlow

13 May 1973 First round	Louth	0-14 - 1-3	Carlow	Drogheda Park, Drogheda
	S Mulroy 0-4, D Reid 0-4, J McLoughlin 0-1, E Sheelan 0-1, A Hoey 0-2, R Brennan 0-1, B Gaughran 0-1.		P Connolly 1-0, B McNally 0-1, JJ Canavan 0-1, B Hughes 0-1.	Attendance: 3,000 Referee: R Barry (Meath)

Dublin v Wexford

20 May 1973 First round	Dublin	3-11 - 0-5	Wexford	Wexford Park, Wexford
	F Murray 2-1, G Wilson 1-1, S Rooney 0-4, J Keaveney 0-2, R Doyle 0-2, A Larkin 0-1.		D Noonan 0-2, D Asple 0-1, G Howlin 0-1, M Quigley 0-1.	Attendance: 2,000 Referee: B Hayden (Carlow)

Second round

Louth v Dublin

27 May 1973 Second round	Louth	1-9 – 2-6	Dublin	Páirc Tailteann, Navan
	A Hoey 1-1, S Mulroy 0-3, B Faulkner 0-2, D Reid 0-2, R Brennan 0-1.		F Murray 1-1, P O'Brien 1-1, S Rooney 0-3, R Doyle 0-1.	Referee: P Cullen (Westmeath)

Louth v Dublin

10 June 1973 Second round replay	Louth	1-8 - 0-9	Dublin	Páirc Tailteann, Navan
	D Reid 0-6, E Sheelan 1-0, R Brennan 0-1, L Leech 0-1.		R Doyle 0-4, D Hickey 0-2, S Rooney 0-1, E Brady 0-1, F Murray 0-1.	Attendance: 12,000 Referee: P Collins (Westmeath)

Quarter-finals

Westmeath v Meath

3 June 1973 Quarter-final	Westmeath	0-8 - 1-6	Meath	Cusack Park, Mullingar
	M Carley 0-4, D Murtagh 0-2, L Eggerton 0-1, V Murray 0-1.		M Kerrigan 1-0, T Brennan 0-3, B Murray 0-2, P Cromwell 0-1.	Referee: G Hoey (Louth)

Wicklow v Laois

3 June 1973 Quarter-final	Wicklow	0-14 - 3-15	Laois	Aughrim Park, Aughrim
	P Clarke 0-9, A Norton 0-1, L O'Loughlin 0-1, B Carthy 0-1, J Darcy 0-1, J Doyle 0-1.		B Miller 0-5, Willie Brennan 0-5, S Allen 1-1, H Mulhaire 1-1, B Lalor 1-0, M Buggy 0-2, J Lalor 0-1.	Referee: B Hayden (Carlow)

Kildare v Longford

10 June 1973 Quarter-final	Kildare	0-13 – 0-8	Longford	Geraldine Park, Athy
	J Donnelly 0-7, P Dunny 0-2, R O'Doherty 0-2, T Carew 0-1, R Flanagan 0-1,		J Hanniffy 0-3, P Bradley 0-2, F Farrell 0-1, B Smyth 0-1, S Mulvihill 0-1.	Referee: P Kelly (Dublin)

Offaly v Louth

17 June 1973 Quarter-final	Offaly	1-8 – 0-8	Louth	Croke Park, Dublin
	W Bryan 1-0, T McTague 0-3, S Cooney 0-1, M Wright 0-1, J Smith 0-1, P Fleming 0-1, K Kilmurray 0-1.		J McLoughlin 0-2, D Reid 0-2, R Barry 0-2, S Mulroy 0-1, D Nugent 0-1.	Referee: R Barry (Meath)

Semi-finals

Meath v Laois

17 June 1973 Semi-final	Meath	2-17 – 2-11	Laois	Croke Park, Dublin
	O O'Brien 1-4, Matt Kerrigan 1-2, T Brennan 0-3, O Geraghty 0-2, K Rennicks 0-2, P Cromwell 0-2, G Farrelly 0-1, B Murray 0-1.		W Brennan 0-5, M Fennell 1-1, S Allen 1-0, M Buggy 0-2, J Lawlor 0-2, B Lawlor 0-1.	Referee: P Kelly (Dublin)

Offaly v Kildare

1 July 1973 Semi-final	Offaly	1-15 – 2-6	Kildare	Croke Park, Dublin
	T McTague 0-8, S Cooney 1-4, K Kilmurray 0-2, S Evans 0-1.		T Carew 1-0, K Kelly 1-0, P Dunny 0-2, J Donnelly 0-2, B O'Doherty 0-1, H Hyland 0-1.	Referee: B Hayden (Carlow)

Final

Offaly v Meath

22 July 1973 Final	Offaly	3-21 – 2-12	Meath	Croke Park, Dublin
	Tony McTague 0-11 (0-8f), Sean Cooney 2-2, Kevin Kilmurray 1-2, Kieran Claffey 0-3, Willie Bryan 0-2, Paddy Fenning 0-1		Ollie O'Brien 1-4 (0-3f), Mick Fay 1-0, Ken Rennicks 0-3, Gerry Farrelly 0-2, Tony Brennan 0-2f, Ollie Geraghty 0-1.	Attendance: 35,990 Referee: Brendan Hayden (Carlow)

Munster Senior Football Championship

Quarter-finals

Clare v Waterford

3 June 1973 Quarter-final	Clare	0–18 – 1–5	Waterford	Gaelic Grounds, Limerick
	M Keogh 0-6, B O'Reilly 0-4, M Greene 0-3, D Donnellan 0-2, S Maloney 0-2, K McGann 0-1.		J Flynn 1-2, V Kirwan 0-2, J Larkin 0-1.	Referee: T Woulfe (Limerick)

Limerick v Tipperary

3 June 1973 Quarter-final	Limerick	1-7 - 4-13	Tipperary	Gaelic Grounds, Limerick
	T Fitzgibbon 1-0, P Aherne 0-7.		P Blythe 3-3, J Cummins 0-7, M Keating 1-1, C O'Flaherty 0-2.	Referee: N Dalton (Waterford)

Semi-finals

Cork v Clare

17 June 1973 Semi-final	Cork	2–14 – 0–3	Clare	Cork Athletic Grounds, Cork
	B Field 1-8, J Barrett 1-2, R Cummins 0-2, D Hunt 0-1, D Barron 0-1.		S Maloney 0-1, B O'Reilly 0-1, P Dillon 0-1.	Referee: S Maloney (Tipperary)

Kerry v Tipperary

17 June 1973 Semi-final	Kerry	3–11 – 0–5	Tipperary	Austin Stack Park, Tralee
	M O'Dwyer 1-6, M O'Sullivan 2-1, J Egan 0-1, D Kavanagh 0-1, J O'Keeffe 0-1, B Lynch 0-1.		J Cummins 0-2, J Kehoe 0-2, C O'Flaherty 0-1.	Referee: F Halbert (Cork)

Final

Cork v Kerry

15 July 1973 Final	Cork	5–12 – 1–15	Kerry	Cork Athletic Grounds, Cork
	Billy Field 1-6 (1-0 pen, 0-5f), Jimmy Barrett 2-2, Ray Cummins 0-4, Declan Barron and Jimmy Barry-Murphy 1-0 each		Mick O'Dwyer 0-6f, Donal Kavanagh 1-0, Brendan Lynch and John Egan 0-3 each, John O'Keeffe, Éamonn O'Donoghue, Jackie Walsh 0-1 each	Attendance: 28,859 Referee: J Moloney (Tipperary)

Ulster Senior Football Championship

Preliminary round

Down v Armagh

10 June 1973 Preliminary round	Down	2–10 – 2–9	Armagh	Páirc Esler, Newry
	S O'Neill 0-6, M Cole 1-1, C McAlarney 1-0, P Rooney 0-2, E Cole 0-1.		L Kerins 2-2, P Loughran 0-5, D Mackin 0-1, S O'Hagan 0-1.	Referee: H McPolin (Armagh)

Quarter-finals

Monaghan v Derry

3 June 1973 Quarter-final	Monaghan	0-5 - 1-7	Derry	St. Mary's Park, Castleblaney
	B Brady 0-2, P McCarthy 0-2, K Traynor 0-1.		F O'Loane 0-4, J O'Leary 1-0, G O'Loughlin 0-1, T McGuinness 0-1, F Moran 0-1.	Referee: P Devlin (Tyrone)

Fermanagh v Antrim

17 June 1973 Quarter-final	Fermanagh	3–9 – 4–4	Antrim	St. Molaise Park, Irvinestown
	E McPartlan 3-0, P McGannity 0-6, A Campbell 0-2, T Henderson 0-1.		G McCann 3-0, V Magee 1-0, P Armstrong 0-2, A McCallin 0-2.	Referee: P Tierney (Cavan)

Donegal v Tyrone

24 June 1973 Quarter-final	Donegal	1-7 - 0-12	Tyrone	MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey
	K Keeney 1-0, N Gallagher 0-2, J Winston 0-2, S Granaghan 0-1, T Quinn 0-1, F McFeeley 0-1.		P Hetherington 0-6, AR McMahon 0-2, S Donaghy 0-1, K Teague 0-1, B Donnelly 0-1, F McGulgan 0-1.	Referee: M McPolin (Antrim)

Down v Cavan

24 June 1973 Quarter-final	Down	1–7 – 0–8	Cavan	Páirc Esler, Newry
	S O'Neill 1-2, M Cole 0-2, C Davey 0-1, P Hamill 0-1, C McAlarney 0-1.		O O'Keeffe 0-2, M Greenan 0-2, H McInerney 0-2, JJ Martin 0-1, R Carolan 0-1.	Referee: T Johnston (Fermanagh)

Semi-finals

Tyrone v Fermanagh

8 July 1973 Semi-final	Tyrone	1–15 – 0–11	Fermanagh	St. Tiernach's Park, Clones
	S Donaghy 1-2, P Hetherington 0-5, F McGuigan 0-3, A McMahon 0-2, J McElroy 0-1, P McMahon 0-1, P Haig 0-1.		F Sherry 0-5, F McGinnity 0-2, PJ Treacy 0-2, E McPartland 0-1, S McGrath 0-1.	Referee: A McPollan (Antrim)

Down v Derry

15 July 1973 Semi-final	Down	1–12 – 0–9	Derry	The Playing Fields, Lurgan
	M Cole 0-5, E Cole 1-1, W Walsh 0-3, P Rooney 0-2, C McAlarney 0-1.		P Doherty 0-3, J O'Leary 0-2, T McGuinness 0-2, T Moran 0-1, S Donaghy 0-1.	Referee: P Devlin (Tyrone)

Final

Tyrone v Down

29 July 1973 Final	Tyrone	3–13 – 1–11	Down	St. Tiernach's Park, Clones
	S McElhattion 2-1, P Hetherington 0-6, K Teague 1-1, B Donnelly 0-3, S Donaghy 0-1, P McGuigan 0-1.		S O'Neill 0-6, D McCartan 1-0, J Murphy 0-2, P Rooney 0-2, E Cole 0-1.	Referee: H McPolin (Antrim)

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

Semi-finals

Galway v Offaly

12 August 1973 Semi-final	Galway	0–16 – 2–8	Offaly	Croke Park, Dublin
	J Tobin 0-8, M Burke 0-2, L Sammon 0-2, M Rooney 0-1, M Hughes 0-1, T Naughton 0-1, J Duggan 0-1.		T McTague 1-3, S Evans 1-2, W Bryan 0-2, K Claffey 0-1.	Attendance: 36,705 Referee: J Moloney (Tipperary)

Cork v Tyrone

19 August 1973 Semi-final	Cork	5–10 – 2–4	Tyrone	Croke Park, Dublin
	D Barron 1-4, J Barry-Murphy 2-0, R Cummins 1-1, S Coughlan 1-1, J Barrett 0-2, D Long 0-1, E Kirby 0-1.		P King 1-0, J Early 1-0, K Teague 0-1, P Hetherington 0-1, S Donaghy 0-1, F McGuigan 0-1.	Attendance: 28,997 Referee: M Loftus (Mayo)

Final

Cork v Galway

23 September 1973 Final	Cork	3-17 - 2-13	Galway	Croke Park, Dublin
	R Cummins 0-8, J Barry-Murphy 2-1, J Barrett 1-2, D Long 0-3, E Kirby 0-1, D Coughlan 0-1, D Barron 0-1.		M Hughes 0-7, T Naughton 1-0, J Hughes 1-0, M Burke 0-2, J Duggan 0-2, TJ Gilmore 0-1, L Sammon 0-1.	Attendance: 73,309 Referee: J Moloney (Tipperary)

Main article: 1973 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final

Championship statistics

Miscellaneous

• Tyrone won their first Ulster title since 1957.
• Offaly win the Leinster title for the third year in succession. It is the first time in their history that they claim the coveted "three-in-a-row". It is the first time since Laois in 1938 that a team claimed three successive Leinster titles.
• The All Ireland semi-final between Cork and Tyrone was the first championship meeting between the teams.
• Cork end their second longest drought without the All Ireland title of 28 years.

Top scorers

Overall

Rank	Player	County	Tally	Total	Matches	Average
1	Tony McTague	Offaly	1-25	28	4	7.00
2	John Tobin	Galway	0-21	21	4	5.25
3	Billy Field	Cork	2-14	20	3	6.66
	Jimmy Barrett	Cork	4-8	20	4	5.00
5	Patsy Hetherington	Tyrone	0-18	18	4	4.50
	Ray Cummins	Cork	0-18	18	4	4.50
7	Seán O'Neill	Down	1-14	17	3	5.66
8	Mick O'Dwyer	Kerry	1-12	15	2	7.50
9	Jimmy Barry-Murphy	Cork	5-1	15	3	5.00
10	Damian Reid	Louth	0-14	14	4	3.50

Single game

Rank	Player	County	Tally	Total	Opposition
1	Billy Field	Cork	1-8	11	Clare
	Tony McTague	Offaly	0-11	11	Meath
3	Willie McGee	Mayo	3-0	9	Meath
	Éamonn McPartland	Fermanagh	3-0	9	Antrim
	Gerry McCann	Antrim	3-0	9	Fermanagh
	Mick O'Dwyer	Kerry	1-6	9	Tipperary
	Billy Field	Cork	1-6	9	Kerry
8	Tommy O'Malley	Mayo	2-2	8	Antrim
	John Cooney	Offaly	2-2	8	Meath
	Jimmy Barrett	Cork	2-2	8	Kerry
	Larry Kerins	Armagh	2-2	8	Down
	Tony McTague	Offaly	0-8	8	Kildare
	John Tobin	Galway	0-8	8	Offaly
	Ray Cummins	Cork	0-8	8	Galway