In the second part of his look at how the football counties currently rank, Cahair O’Kane looks at the top 16 teams in the country...
1: DUBLIN
It was more of a squeeze than, perhaps, many of us expected. Kerry and Mayo could both have had them beaten. And yet, because of that, 2016 probably confirmed the presence of arguably their most important characteristic of all - pure grit.
Some felt they’d be a softer touch in defence with the losses of Rory O’Carroll and Jack McCaffrey - the latter of whom seems set to return in 2017 - but they covered for them superbly. The concern, ironically, was that they didn’t quite spark as strongly in attack as in previous seasons.
But they are 29 league and Championship games unbeaten, including the whole of this year. It’s a stunning achievement that shouldn’t be taken away from them.
NFL Division One
Dublin 2-14 Kerry 0-14; Mayo 0-7 Dublin 0-9; Dublin 1-14 Monaghan 0-16; Dublin 2-14 Cork 2-10; Down 1-7 Dublin 1-15; Dublin 1-10 Donegal 0-7; Roscommon 1-12 Dublin 1-13; semi-final: Dublin 1-20 Donegal 0-13; final: Dublin 2-18 Kerry 0-13
Leinster SFC
Quarter-final: Laois 2-10 Dublin 2-21; semi-final: Dublin 0-21 Meath 0-11; final: Dublin 2-19 Westmeath 0-10
All-Ireland SFC
Quarter-final: Dublin 1-15 Donegal 1-10; semi-final: Dublin 0-22 Kerry 2-14; final: Dublin 2-9 Mayo 0-15; final replay: Dublin 1-15 Mayo 1-14
2: MAYO
Will they ever win one? For all that continues to conspire against them, their age profile suggests that there is time yet for them to get over the line. Only Andy Moran (32), Keith Higgins (31) and Colm Boyle (30) from the team that started the All-Ireland replay have hit the three-O.
Cillian O’Connor, Lee Keegan, Aidan O’Shea, Donal Vaughan, Brendan Harrison et al are still a year or two from reaching their peak yet. But it’s how they recover mentally and how they find a scoring forward of two.
After losing their Connacht title, they recovered and a dogged display against Tyrone helped them through, but they just didn’t have the scoring power to get them across the line against Dublin.
NFL Division One
Cork 1-18 Mayo 0-12; Mayo 0-7 Dublin 0-9; Donegal 1-14 Mayo 1-12; Monaghan 1-12 Mayo 2-11; Mayo 0-14 Kerry 2-13; Roscommon 1-7 Mayo 1-11; Mayo 1-19 Down 1-16
Connacht SFC
Quarter-final: London 0-9 Mayo 2-16; semi-final: Galway 1-12 Mayo 0-12
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round two: Mayo 2-14 Fermanagh 1-12; Qualifying round three: Mayo 2-17 Kildare 0-14; Qualifying round four: Mayo 3-15 Westmeath 1-14; quarter-final: Mayo 0-13 Tyrone 0-12; semi-final: Mayo 2-13 Tipperary 0-14; final: Dublin 2-9 Mayo 0-15; final replay: Dublin 1-15 Mayo 1-14
3: KERRY
With a very comfortable path to a Munster title and an All-Ireland semi-final mapped out from early in the year, Kerry had no sooner picked themselves up from last year’s September defeat than they were focusing their gaze on Dublin again.
It so nearly paid off as Eamonn Fitzmaurice’s tactics made the Dubs work for their semi-final victory, but the Kingdom will look back with regret at squandering a three-point lead in the final 10 minutes.
The decision to withdraw Paul Geaney will go down in infamy, and there is likely to be a fresh look about them next year, with a number of retirements expected over the closed season.
But Fitzmaurice signing on again was important to them and he will still believe that there’s another All-Ireland in this squad.
NFL Division One
Dublin 2-14 Kerry 0-14; Kerry 1-10 Roscommon 0-14; Down 0-6 Kerry 0-22; Kerry 1-13 Donegal 1-8; Mayo 0-14 Kerry 2-13; Monaghan 1-9 Kerry 1-17; Kerry 0-20 Cork 1-12; semi-final: Kerry 3-15 Roscommon 0-14; final: Dublin 2-18 Kerry 0-13
Munster SFC
Semi-final: Clare 0-17 Kerry 2-23; final: Kerry 3-17 Tipperary 2-10
All-Ireland SFC
Quarter-final: Kerry 2-16 Clare 0-11; semi-final: Dublin 0-22 Kerry 2-14
4: TYRONE
They made a point about winning a first Ulster title in six years, and they succeeded, but ultimately they hoped it would be a crucial step on the golden path back to an
All-Ireland final.
Whether they took Mayo lightly or whether the gameplan was actually fatally flawed is something that only further examination will provide the answer to. But they are back on top of the pile in Ulster and they will spend next spring back in the top flight in the National League as well after claiming the Division Two title in an unbeaten eight-month spell that ended with a wasteful final quarter against Mayo.
NFL Division Two
Tyrone 0-10 Cavan 0-8; Galway 1-9 Tyrone 1-11; Laois 0-14 Tyrone 1-14; Tyrone 2-15 Derry 0-12; Meath 1-11 Tyrone 1-17; Tyrone 0-13 Armagh 1-10; Fermanagh 0-12 Tyrone 1-9; final: Tyrone 1-17 Cavan 0-15
Ulster SFC
Quarter-final: Derry 0-12 Tyrone 3-14; semi-final: Tyrone 0-16 Cavan 3-7; semi-final replay: Tyrone 5-18 Cavan 2-17; final: Tyrone 0-13 Donegal 0-11
All-Ireland SFC
Quarter-final: Mayo 0-13 Tyrone 0-12
Footage from Tyrone's Ulster final win over Donegal:
5: DONEGAL
Ultimately, their year was a disappointing one that saw them end up trophyless and fail to get past the last eight of the All-Ireland series. When you strip it back, they led the Ulster final in injury-time and their five-point defeat by Dublin was no huge shame given their strength.
But for a squad of players with All-Ireland and Ulster medals, that will never satisfy them, and the question is whether Rory Gallagher can find the balance between freshening up and retaining their core of experience next year.
With talented minors and U21s coming through, they will dine at the top table for a while yet.
NFL Division One
Down 0-7 Donegal 3-15; Donegal 2-14 Cork 1-7; Donegal 1-14 Mayo 1-12; Kerry 1-13 Donegal 1-8; Donegal 0-17 Roscommon 1-19; Dublin 1-10 Donegal 0-7; Monaghan 1-10 Donegal 1-9; semi-final: Dublin 1-20 Donegal 0-13
ULSTER SFC
Quarter-final: Donegal 2-12 Fermanagh 0-11; semi-final: Monaghan 0-14 Donegal 1-11; semi-final replay: Donegal 0-17 Monaghan 2-10; final: Tyrone 0-13 Donegal 0-11
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round four: Donegal 0-21 Cork 1-15; quarter-final: Dublin 1-15 Donegal 1-10
6: TIPPERARY
FIVE years on from their historic All-Ireland minor football success, Tipperary made serious inroads. The most impressive thing was that they did it without so many players that were expected to backbone Liam Kearns’s hopes of success.
Losing Stephen O’Brien and Seamus Kennedy to the hurlers and Colin O’Riordan to the AFL appeared almost terminal, but they recorded a first Championship win over Cork since 1944 to kick-start a run to the All-Ireland semi-final.
Best of all, they did it playing with an attacking, fearless style that they only briefly abandoned in the Munster final defeat by Kerry. Thrilled the nation by beating Galway and then gave Mayo a decent test in the All-Ireland semi-final.
NFL Division Three
Limerick 1-12 Tipperary 2-9; Tipperary 2-7 Clare 1-7; Westmeath 0-11 Tipperary 0-8; Tipperary 2-11 Offaly 0-12; Longford 1-17 Tipperary 1-11; Tipperary 1-5 Kildare 2-13; Sligo 0-18 Tipperary 3-9
Munster SFC
Quarter-final: Waterford 1-7 Tipperary 1-15; semi-final: Tipperary 3-15 Cork 2-16; final: Kerry 3-17 Tipperary 2-10
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round four: Tipperary 1-21 Derry 2-17; quarter-final: Tipperary 3-13 Galway 1-10; semi-final: Mayo 2-13 Tipperary 0-14
7: GALWAY
A bit like Tyrone in that they would have seen a provincial breakthrough as a step towards a bigger prize still, but ultimately fell short in the last-eight. Without disrespecting Tipperary - who unquestionably deserved their win on the day, and could have won by more - it will sting the Tribes men that they fell short against the beaten Munster finalists.
But the season was a huge step forward, with a decent stab made at promotion from Division Two. That will surely become the first aim next season.
NFL Division Two
Laois 1-10 Galway 3-12; Galway 1-9 Tyrone 1-11; Derry 2-12 Galway 1-18; Galway 0-15 Meath 1-12; Armagh 1-15 Galway 1-15; Galway 0-15 Fermanagh 0-15; Cavan 1-16 Galway 1-12
Connacht SFC
Semi-final: Galway 1-12 Mayo 0-12; final: Roscommon 1-10 Galway 0-13; final replay: Galway 3-16 Roscommon 0-14
All-Ireland SFC
Quarter-final: Galway 1-10 Tipperary 3-13
8: MONAGHAN
It just never clicked for Monaghan this year at all. Looking back, the only time that they ever hit the straps was in Croke Park against Dublin at the start of the year, and the second-half against a poor Down side in their Ulster opener.
They still managed to take Donegal to a replay in the provincial semi-final and had the second game lasted another five minutes, chances are that Malachy O’Rourke’s side would have been back in the decider.
But they integrated a few U21s and with O’Rourke back for another three years, expect a revitalised unit in 2017.
NFL Division One
Roscommon 1-9 Monaghan 2-10; Monaghan 0-13 Down 0-11; Dublin 1-14 Monaghan 0-16; Monaghan 1-12 Mayo 2-11; Cork 1-20 Monaghan 1-13; Monaghan 1-19 Kerry 1-17; Monaghan 1-10 Donegal 1-9
Ulster SFC
Quarter-final: Monaghan 2-22 Down 0-9; semi-final: Monaghan 0-14 Donegal 1-11; semi-final replay: Donegal 0-17 Monaghan 2-10
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round three: Monaghan 1-13 Longford 2-13
9: ROSCOMMON
The hype machine was hurtling down the hill by mid-March but was ultimately tipped over in a disappointing, then tumultuous, end to the year. Wins in Kerry, Cork and Donegal during the league helped them reach a semi-final in their first year back up, but their struggle past New York in the Connacht preliminary round hinted at things to come.
Galway were the better side across both games in the final and the legs and minds were still weary six days later as Clare put them to the sword. Fergal O’Donnell then quit as joint-manager having been “undermined”, and, after a bit of wrangling it was finally confirmed that Kevin McStay would be the man in charge in 2017.
Not the harmony they would have liked.
NFL Division One
Roscommon 1-9 Monaghan 2-10; Kerry 1-10 Roscommon 0-14; Cork 3-10 Roscommon 4-25; Roscommon 1-12 Down 0-6; Donegal 0-17 Roscommon 1-19; Roscommon 1-7 Mayo 1-11; Roscommon 1-12 Dublin 1-13; semi-final: Kerry 3-15 Roscommon 0-14
Connacht SFC
Preliminary round: New York 0-17 Roscommon 1-15; quarter-final: Roscommon 1-21 Leitrim 0-11; semi-final: Roscommon 4-16 Sligo 2-13; final: Roscommon 1-10 Galway 0-13; final replay: Galway 3-16 Roscommon 0-14
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round four: Clare 2-12 Roscommon 1-9
Cavan fell at the Ulster semi-final stage to Tyrone:
10: CAVAN
There could scarcely have been more contrast in Cavan’s two performances against Tyrone that ultimately defined the path they’d take in what was to be Terry Hyland’s last season in charge.
They were gritty and relentless in the Clones rain the first day, netting three times against a team that didn’t concede goals while holding their own at the other end. But they conceded a massive 5-18 in the replay and, although they steadied up with victory over Carlow, a home defeat by Derry was a disappointing end to Hyland’s four-and-a-half year tenure.
NFL Division Two
Tyrone 0-10 Cavan 0-8; Cavan 1-11 Derry 1-12; Meath 1-13 Cavan 1-20; Cavan 3-18 Armagh 0-10; Fermanagh 0-9 Cavan 1-12; Cavan 1-17 Laois 0-15; Cavan 1-16 Galway 1-12; final: Tyrone 1-17 Cavan 0-15
Ulster SFC
Quarter-final: Cavan 2-16 Armagh 0-14; semi-final: Tyrone 0-16 Cavan 3-7; semi-final replay: Tyrone 5-18 Cavan 2-17
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round two: Carlow 0-12 Cavan 2-13; Qualifying round three: Cavan 0-18 Derry 1-17
11: CORK
A Championship defeat at the hands of Tipperary for the first time since 1944 underpinned the poorest year for Cork football in quite a while. Peadar Healy took over from Brian Cuthbert but the ship was already taking water.
The new manager was unable to prevent relegation to Division Two, with a humbling 18-point home defeat by Roscommon the low point. They almost escaped from Thurles in the Munster semi-final but didn’t really deserve to, and they could do nothing to stop Patrick McBrearty ending their year in Croke Park in round four of the Qualifiers - which they had done well to reach.
NFL Division One
Cork 1-18 Mayo 0-12; Donegal 2-14 Cork 1-7; Cork 3-10 Roscommon 4-25; Dublin 2-14 Cork 2-10; Cork 1-20 Monaghan 1-13; Cork 0-12 Down 0-7; Kerry 0-20 Cork 1-12
Munster SFC
Semi-final: Tipperary 3-15 Cork 2-16
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round two: Limerick 0-10 Cork 2-12; Qualifying round three: Longford 1-6 Cork 2-9; Qualifying round four: Donegal 0-21 Cork 1-15
12: WESTMEATH
We’ve come to pretty much ignore their league campaigns at this stage, given how their last two summers have brought them to the last-12, despite what the springs hinted at. Reaching the last two Leinster finals - this year beating Offaly and Kildare, having last year accounted for Louth, Wexford and Meath - affirms their position as second in command to Dublin.
Equally though, the 15-point margin of defeat in the decider shows how far they have still to go. They have developed a very experienced core that still has more to give. It’s hard, for instance, to believe Kieran Martin is just 26 and John Heslin two years his junior.
Need to reach an All-Ireland quarter-final now.
NFL Division Three
Westmeath 0-11 Kildare 2-9; Sligo 1-11 Westmeath 1-10; Westmeath 0-11 Tipperary 0-8; Clare 1-18 Westmeath 0-10; Limerick 0-7 Westmeath 3-14; Westmeath 1-9 Offaly 0-9; Longford 0-13 Westmeath 0-11
Leinster SFC
Quarter-final: Offaly 0-12 Westmeath 0-13; semi-final: Westmeath 1-12 Kildare 1-11; final: Dublin 2-19 Westmeath 0-10
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round three: Mayo 3-15 Westmeath 1-14
13: DERRY
They're nothing if not entertaining. Derry averaged just over 18 points per game in the first year of Damian Barton’s reign, yet won just two league games - the first two - and were lucky to avoid relegation on points difference.
They then suffered a humbling Ulster quarter-final defeat at home to bitter rivals Tyrone but by the end of the campaign, they were unlucky not to reach the last-eight. Their naivety was again exposed as they let a two-point lead slip in the last three minutes of an epic round four Qualifier with Tipperary.
The loss of numerous key players for next season will cause them trouble.
NFL Division Two
Derry 3-13 Fermanagh 1-10; Cavan 1-11 Derry 1-12; Derry 2-12 Galway 1-18; Tyrone 2-15 Derry 0-12; Laois 1-22 Derry 5-10; Derry 2-12 Meath 2-12; Armagh 1-18 Derry 0-15
Ulster SFC
Quarter-final: Derry 0-12 Tyrone 3-14
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round one: Derry 1-18 Louth 2-10; Qualifying round two: Derry 1-14 Meath 1-11; Qualifying round three: Cavan 0-18 Derry 1-17; Qualifying round four: Derry 2-17 Tipperary 1-21
14: MEATH
Mick O’Dowd cut a truly disconsolate figure as he stood in the corner of the away dressing room at Owenbeg, announcing that he was quitting after their round two Championship exit against Derry.
A mediocre, mid-table league campaign has almost become typically Meath in recent years, with an opening day victory over Armagh and a final day win in Laois the highlights.
After beating Louth they restricted Dublin fairly well in Leinster, but still lost by 10 points, before falling away against Derry. The highly-rated Andy McEntee will eye improvement after taking the reins.
NFL Division Two
Meath 1-10 Armagh 0-8; Fermanagh 0-10 Meath 0-6; Meath 1-13 Cavan 1-20; Galway 0-15 Meath 1-12; Meath 1-11 Tyrone 1-17; Derry 2-12 Meath 2-12; Laois 1-9 Meath 0-18
Leinster SFC
Quarter-final: Louth 1-13 Meath 0-20; semi-final: Dublin 0-21 Meath 0-11
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round two: Derry 1-14 Meath 1-11
15: FERMANAGH
They'll have watched the All-Ireland final through the prism of pain that Aidan O’Shea’s, er, theatric fall left Fermanagh with. They had started to fade in Castlebar but that penalty turned the game and the face of the entire Championship, as it transpired.
Could certainly consider themselves unlucky to have been pitted against Mayo and their performance shows they’re a better, grittier side than a few of those who reached the last-12, and arguably beyond.
Stayed up in Division Two despite the absence of key players throughout. They need to take a considerable Championship scalp soon though.
NFL Division Two
Derry 3-13 Fermanagh 1-10; Fermanagh 0-10 Meath 0-6; Armagh 1-10 Fermanagh 0-12; Fermanagh 1-17 Laois 0-10; Fermanagh 0-9 Cavan 1-12; Galway 0-15 Fermanagh 0-15; Fermanagh 0-12 Tyrone 1-9
Ulster SFC
Quarter-final: Donegal 2-12 Fermanagh 0-11
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round one: Wexford 1-11 Fermanagh 0-19; Qualifying round two: Mayo 2-14 Fermanagh 0-12
16: DOWN
They may have plied their trade in Division One, but the spring spent there highlighted they were out of their depth. Quite how bad it was to get, though, was still a surprise. An entire season without a victory over an inter-county side makes it one of the worst - if not the worst - years in Down’s illustrious history.
They competed for a half against Monaghan before capitulating in the Ulster Championship, and were then tumbled over the first hurdle by Longford, though the pain of that loss would have been dulled by their victors’ subsequent win over Monaghan.
NFL Division One
Down 0-7 Donegal 3-15; Monaghan 0-13 Down 0-11; Down 0-6 Kerry 0-22; Roscommon 1-12 Down 0-6; Down 1-7 Dublin 1-15; Cork 0-12 Down 0-7; Mayo 1-19 Down 1-16
Ulster SFC
Quarter-final: Monaghan 2-22 Down 0-9
All-Ireland SFC
Qualifying round one: Down 3-17 Longford 2-24 (aet)
