Worst All-Ireland champions last 25 years

I agree with a lot of what you say above bluearmy and out of interest would you also devalue (for want of a better word) Kerry's All Irelands in '06 and '07 and '09 because they didn't beat Tyrone along the way?

Was thinking that myself Jonsmith...I'm sure it will always be a boast for Tyrone fans and a niggling thorn in Kerry's great achievements the past decade. I suppose there are two ways of looking at it...Cork have struggled with Kerry in the past few years but while Kerry struggled with Tyrone, they still won half the All-Irelands available in the past decade, but of course won them without facing Tyrone.

But, in my opinion, the years Kerry won their titles they were probably the best team in the competition. They were pretty damn good in 2004 and made easy work of a Mayo team that had beaten Tyrone (although I still don't understand how Tyrone let that one slip..especially after witnessing their great Armagh rivals crash out)...played an epic final with Tyrone in 2005...ended their Ulster hoodoo in 2006 by beating Armagh and went on to win the back to back.

Suppose it brings up the old team of the decade question. Personally I like to look at it this way ...Kerry and Tyrone were two brilliant teams and all their titles were the product of pure talent. Neither of their titles, in my opinion, can be devalued...and I certainly wouldn't devalue Kerry's just because they didn't beat Tyrone. Although everytime Kerry and Tyrone fans meet I'm sure the Kerry fans will get very defensive about it!

But yeah, any team that had the likes of Dara O'Sé, Dara O'Cinneide, Moynihan, Marc and Tomás, Mike Frank, Gooch all pass through its ranks simply must be seen as worthy in every sense of the word.

Donegal - 1992
Derry - 1993
Dublin - 1995
Kerry - 1997
Armagh - 2002
Cork - 2010


Right then. The argument that Dublin were knocking on the door for a number of years before 1992 does not alas hold water for a number of reasons. They Lost to Donegal in 1992, and I backed Donegal. They lost to Derry in 1993 and I won a fortune. So in the early 1990s Ulster football actually was strong. So take one example from Ulster to illustrate the fallacy of the Dubs knocking on the door.

In 1991 Derry surprisingly lost a replay to Down in ulster, Down having equalised with the last kick in the first game. Down won the all Ireland. In 1992 they surprisingly lost to Donegal, who won the all Ireland. In 1994 they lost a cracking game to Down, who won the all Ireland. In 1995 they lost to Tyrone, who should have won the all Ireland.

As late as 1997 on holiday in Mayo the shop keeper I knew reckoned Cavan would beat Kerry. I told him Antrim would beat Cavan, and he said with awe "they beat....Derry"

Derry were winning the league every year ad I think they must have gone about 5 years at one stage without a non Ulster side beating them. Hence they were feared throughout Ireland. They only had two really useful scoring forwards in Gormley and Brolley but that was enough as the others did the donkey work. The man credited with "puke" football was attached to this side sometime. In Tohill they had a wonder, as good a mid fielder as I ever saw, and were powerful all over the field. Given a back door, and if the county board had stuck with Coleman a la Tyrone and Harte, Derry may well have won 3 or 4 all Irelands, and maybe even 3 in a row 1995-1997. I saw them beat Donegal at Casement circa 1993 and they were awesome. Possibly the BEST Ulster team in the 25 year period we are discussing.

Donegal in 1992 again cannot be taken in isolation as they could not get out of Ulster and were losing to the all Ireland winners in Down and Derry.

Dublin in 1995 took their chance, although the shenanigans in the final were a disgrace, but they had some all time favourites of mine. But given their losses over that period, a large question mark hangs over them.

Kery in 1997, not a lot of pedigree going there, lost to a useful Mayo the year before, and done by Kildare the following year, so a question mark there as well.

Armagh 2002. Easy way of looking at this is where do we rate Tyrone 2001-2005? They played Armagh in about six championship games, and at the end of all that, Tyrone come out as aggregate winners by....one point. Indeed n 2005 Armagh should have lost the two Ulster games against Tyrone, but should have won the all Ireland semi. In Diarmuid Marsden they had one of the best Ulster players of the decade, and I often think if Diarmuid had still been about in 2005 Armagh would have won sam. We will never know.

So to sum up, the worst team to have won Sam in the last 25 years....Meath 1996. In that year Tyrone were miles ahead of everyone, bar maybe Derry (I know they beat Derry) but Meath butchered them, and then proceeded to butcher Mayo. In a replay.

So...Meath 1996.

Oops Cork 2010. Arguably the 2nd best side in the noughties. Beat Kerry 4 times, and have only lost to Kerry since Fermanagh beat them in 2004. So take away Kerry, and Cork could have been completing a 6 in a row.

black&white wrote:Quick addendum to that.

Armagh in 2002 should probably be considered luckier to have won that year than Cork were last year.

Quarter final, Dara McGarty fists a point in 1-on-1. Point was the equalising score. If he took his goal Armagh were out. With the last attack of the game, Eamon O'Hara ballooned a shot from 30 metres out towards the corner flag, with Dessie Sloyan unmarked on the 21.

Replay, (Armagh won by 2 points), in injury time, Sligo dropped a free into the square. Gerry McGowan was pulled down whilst trying to connect with the ball, and one of the Armagh corner backs then scooped the ball off the ground in the small square to clear the danger. (Armagh just about deserved to win the replay, but were very lucky that no penalty was given).

Semi-final, Ray Cosgrave - say no more!

On the day of the replay I was on my way to Spiddal. Stopped at the Park Hotel in Sligo as I did in those days to watch the Kilkenny V Tipp hurling semi. As I was leaving at 5pm a few Sligo lads asked if I was not staying on to see the "Nordies" from Armagh. I told them Armagh would destroy Sligo by....two points. In those days Armagh were so like Inter Milan in the 1960s they won most games by one point.

Two points meant they had ate ye.javascript:emoticonp('')

The Meath team that won the All-Ireland in 1996 contains no less than 22 AllStars. 22 AllStars Patrique. Note I have not included Evan Kelly who started the drawn game against Mayo but was replaced by Colm Brady for the replay, or Ollie Murphy who was a sub in both games. If I did, then that'd be 25 AllStars.

By way of comparison, the Derry team of 1993 had 17 AllStars (18 if you include Dermot McNichol who was a sub), the sum of the two Down teams have 13 AllStars and Donegal footballers of 1992 only have a miserable 10 AllStars between them.

So Patrique would want to cop on to himself before making ill-judged comments like the one above. Just because Meath's win didn't fall into line with the preconceieved ideas he had before 1996, he thinks they are the worst. That year, Meath annihilated Carlow and Laois, before toppling the reigning All-Ireland champions in the pouring rain of a Leinster Final. And call it butchered if you wish, but Meath comfortably annihilated Tyrone in the semi-final, 2-15 to 0-12. Whoever Ulster sent up to Croke Park that day were in for a massacre. And we later went on to overcome a rare Mayo performance in an All-Ireland final, who themselves were far from ordinary. By the way, Meath would've it again in 1997 but for the emergence of Micko's Kildare and a very good Offaly team, coupled with the fact that we had to first beat Dublin. All the while a Cavan team made up mostly of the previous year's u21 team got out of the jungle that was supposedly Ulster football.

If Ulster had sent the McDermott's club from Antrim to play Meath that day the people of Drogheda would be talking fondly of Cromwell.

Meath won easily in the end, just as I suspect Man United would have won easily against Barcelona if they had kicked Messi, Iniesta and Xavi to death in the first ten minutes. For those read Canavan, Dooher and McBride. If they had known that Cavlan was that good and would produce a MOTM display they would have done him as well.


As for.....all stars? The Antrim team from 1988-1993 yielded about 5 all stars. None before, none since.

So where those players the greatest ever to hurl from Antrim? I doubt it somewhat. All stars are for people who play in the latter stages of the all Ireland. Doesn't mean you are a good individual player. I think Ollie Murphy even won one.

Nope, tyrone or Mayo would have done for Meath that year as both had better sides.

As for beating the Dubs, did me a favour as I was in Casement club telling all and sundry that Meath would win that one easily.

As I said, meath would not have been butchering McGilligan or Tohill...........I suspect Derry would have destroyed them. Given a back door.

patrique wrote:If Ulster had sent the McDermott's club from Antrim to play Meath that day the people of Drogheda would be talking fondly of Cromwell.

Meath won easily in the end, just as I suspect Man United would have won easily against Barcelona if they had kicked Messi, Iniesta and Xavi to death in the first ten minutes. For those read Canavan, Dooher and McBride. If they had known that Cavlan was that good and would produce a MOTM display they would have done him as well.


As for.....all stars? The Antrim team from 1988-1993 yielded about 5 all stars. None before, none since.

So where those players the greatest ever to hurl from Antrim? I doubt it somewhat. All stars are for people who play in the latter stages of the all Ireland. Doesn't mean you are a good individual player. I think Ollie Murphy even won one.

Nope, tyrone or Mayo would have done for Meath that year as both had better sides.

As for beating the Dubs, did me a favour as I was in Casement club telling all and sundry that Meath would win that one easily.

As I said, meath would not have been butchering McGilligan or Tohill...........I suspect Derry would have destroyed them. Given a back door.

You're a gas man Pat...

Thank you Jon.

I confes I was about the first person to see how good Giles was. Back in 1992 at the semi stage I did a treble bet, Donegal for the senior, Tyrone U21 and Armagh minor. Armagh, led by the magnificent Marsden were about 5 up in injury time but Meath came back, with Giles pulling the strings.

In 1995 Dublin brutalised him in the Leinster final. However the Dubs finally landed the grail,that year so it was obvious they were gone, so a smart man knew who would win in 1996.

Especially as Loyal says that Dublin team were useless.

Leinster was always weak and still is. Last year Meath won it, and sure Antrim beat them in the league this year, the only game we won.

Morally last year Louth won Leinster, got hammered by Carlow this year who today lost to....Antrim.

If Antrim footballers were in Leinster instead of the hurlers I reckon we would win 7 titles every decade.

Patrique is only dangling the carrot. He knows, as well as me, where that Meath team lie in the overall scheme of things. And it's certainly not as he's articulated here.

Cork, no debate required

Does this mean Joe brolly is right dear lord tony Davis won't be happy ! And mayo are no great shakes either

Cork missing 4 of their first choice attackers - but lets ignore that. Any other team would suffer - including Kerry. Cork deserve a lot more credit than some begrudgers here give them ....

Jayo Cluxton wrote:Cork missing 4 of their first choice attackers - but lets ignore that. Any other team would suffer - including Kerry. Cork deserve a lot more credit than some begrudgers here give them ....

Can't stand the Langers but they were worthy Champions..

Also - until today Cork have only been beaten by Kerry in the C'ship since 2004 (or 2003) when they lost to Fermanagh. Time to lose the sour grapes Loyal - it was a long time ago ...