South West Junior A Football Championship
The South West Junior A Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Bandon Co-op Carbery Junior A Football Championship) is an annual Gaelic football competition organised by the Carbery Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1926 for junior Gaelic football teams in the Barony of Carbery in County Cork, Ireland.
| South West Junior A Football Championship | |
|---|---|
| Code | Gaelic football |
| Founded | 1926 |
| Region |  |
| Trophy | Mick McCarthy Cup |
| No. of teams | 20 |
| Title holders |  |
| Most titles | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} |
| Sponsors | Bandon Co-op |
| Official website | Carbery GAA |
The series of games begin in April, with the championship culminating with the final in the autumn. The championship includes a knock-out stage and a "back door" for teams defeated in the first round.
The South West Junior Championship is an integral part of the wider Cork Junior Football Championship. The winners and runners-up of the West Cork championship join their counterparts from the other seven divisions to contest the county championship.
20 clubs currently participate in the South West Championship. The title has been won at least once by 21 different clubs. The all-time record-holders are Bandon, who have won a total of 16 titles.
St. James's are the title-holders after defeating Ballinascarthy by 0-11 to 0-9 in the 2019 championship final.[1] It was their first ever title at this grade.
The championship
Overview
The West Cork Junior Championship is effectively a knockout tournament with pairings drawn at random — there are no seeds.
Each match is played as a single leg. If a match ends as a draw there is a period of extra time. However, if both sides are still level at the end of extra time, a replay takes place and so on, until a winner is found.
Format
Preliminary round: Four teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the two pairings. The two winning teams advance to the latter stages of the championship. The two losing teams advance directly to Round 1.
Round 1: Sixteen teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the eight pairings. The eight winning teams of these games advance directly to Round 3. The eight losing teams advance directly to Round 2.
Round 2: Eight teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the four pairings. The four winning teams of these games advance directly to the quarter-finals. The four losing teams enter the relegation play-offs.
Round 3: Eight teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the four pairings. The four winning teams of these games advance directly to the quarter-finals. The four losing teams are eliminated from the championship.
Relegation play-offs: Four teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the two pairings. The two losing teams advance to the final. The losing team from that game is relegated from the championship.
Quarter-finals: Eight teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the eight pairings. The four winning teams advance directly to the semi-finals. The four losing teams are eliminated from the championship.
Semi-finals: Four teams contest this round. An open draw is made to determine the two pairings. The two winning teams advance directly to the final. The two losing teams are eliminated from the championship.
Final: The final is contested by the two semi-final winners.
Participating teams (2019)
| Team | Location | Colours |
|---|---|---|
| Ballinascarthy | Ballinascarthy | Red and white |
| Bandon | Bandon | Yellow and white |
| Barryroe | Barryroe | Blue and navy |
| Carbery Rangers | Rosscarbery | Green, white and gold |
| Castlehaven | Castlehaven | Blue and white |
| Clann na nGael | Drimoleague | Green, white and black |
| Clonakilty | Clonakilty | Green and red |
| Diarmuid Ó Mathúna's | Castletown-Kinneigh | Blue and gold |
| Dohenys | Dunmanway | Green and white |
| Ilen Rovers | Baltimore | Green and white |
| Kilbrittain | Kilbrittain | Black and yellow |
| Kilmacabea | Leap | Green and yellow |
| Kilmeen | Rossmore | Blue and white |
| Muintir Bháire | Durrus | Maroon and white |
| O'Donovan Rossa | Skibbereen | Red and white |
| St. Colum's | Kealkill | Black and orange |
| St. James's | Ardfield/Rathbarry | Green and gold |
| St Mary's | Enniskean | Green and gold |
| St Oliver Plunkett's | Ahiohill | Black and white |
| Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh's | Caheragh | Red and yellow |
Roll of honour
| # | Team | Wins | Winning Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bandon | 16 | 1929, 1947, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1960, 1970, 1971, 1975, 1986, 1989, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2015 |
| 2 | Dohenys | 12 | 1927, 1931, 1935, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1992, 1993 |
| 3 | Carbery Rangers | 10 | 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1980, 1984, 1987, 1991, 1998, 2003 |
| 4 | Bantry Blues | 9 | 1928, 1932, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1985 |
| 5 | O'Donovan Rossa | 7 | 1945, 1961, 1963, 1974, 1979, 1982, 2005 |
| 6 | Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh's | 6 | 1995, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2012 |
| 7 | Clonakilty | 4 | 1930, 1948, 1949, 1977 |
| Newcestown | 4 | 1964, 1967, 1988, 1990 | |
| Ilen Rovers | 4 | 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001 | |
| 8 | Enniskean | 3 | 1933, 1934, 1936 |
| Clann na nGael | 3 | 1941, 1942, 1981 | |
| 9 | Darrara | 2 | 1954, 1955 |
| Castlehaven | 2 | 1973, 1976 | |
| Ballinascarthy | 2 | 1978, 1983 | |
| St Mary's | 2 | 2009, 2014 | |
| Gabriel Rangers | 2 | 2010, 2016 | |
| Kilmacabea | 2 | 2017, 2018 | |
| 10 | Kilbrittain | 1 | 1926 |
| Rock Rovers | 1 | 1943 | |
| Argideen Rangers | 1 | 1994 | |
| St. Colum's | 1 | 2013 | |
| St. James's | 1 | 2019 |
Records
By decade
The most successful team of each decade, judged by number of West Cork Junior Football Championship titles, is as follows:
- 1920s: 1 each for Kilbrittain (1926), Dohenys (1927), Bantry Blues (1928) and Bandon (1929)
- 1930s: 3 for Carbery Rangers (1937-38-39)
- 1940s: 2 each for Clann na nGael (1941-42) and Clonakilty (1948-49)
- 1950s: 4 each for Bandon (1950-51-52-53) and Dohenys (1956-57-58-59)
- 1960s: 3 for Dohenys (1962-65-66)
- 1970s: 3 for Bandon (1970-71-75)
- 1980s: 3 for Carbery Rangers (1980-84-87)
- 1990s: 2 each for Carbery Rangers (1991-98), Dohenys (1992-93), Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh's (1995-97) and Ilen Rovers (1996-99)
- 2000s: 3 for Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh's (2002-04-06)
- 2010s: 2 each for Gabriel Rangers (2010-16) and Bandon (2011-15)
Successful defending
10 teams of the 21 who have won the championship have successfully defended the title. These are:
- Bandon on 5 occasions (1951, 1952, 1953, 1971 and 2008)
- Dohenys on 5 occasions (1957, 1958, 1959, 1966 and 1993)
- Carbery Rangers on 3 occasions {1938, 1939 and 1940)
- Bantry Blues on 2 occasions (1947 and 1969)
- Ilen Rovers on 2 occasions (2000 and 2001)
- Clonakilty on 1 occasion (1949)
- Enniskean on 1 occasion (1934)
- Clann na nGael on 1 occasion (1942)
- Darrara on 1 occasion (1955)
- Kilmacabea on 1 occasion (2018)
Gaps
Top ten longest gaps between successive championship titles:
- 40 years: Carbery Rangers (1940-1980)
- 39 years: Clann na nGael (1942-1981)
- 28 years: Clonakilty (1949-1977)
- 26 years: Dohenys (1966-1992)
- 23 years: O'Donovan Rossa (1982-2005)
- 22 years: Bantry Blues (1932-1944)
- 21 years: Dohenys (1935-1956)
- 21 years: Bantry Blues (1947-1968)
- 21 years: Newcestown (1967-1988)
- 18 years: Bandon (1929-1947)
- 18 years: Clonakilty (1930-1948)
- 18 years: Bandon (1989-2007)
Winners and finalists
The Double
Five teams have won the South West Junior Football Championship and the South West Junior Hurling Championship in a single year as part of a Gaelic football-hurling double. Kilbrittain became the first team to win the double in 1926. Bandon are the record holders having claimed the double on four occasions - 1929, 1960, 1971 and 1975. Dohenys are the only club to have won a back-to-back double - 1958 and 1959. Newcestown (1967) and Clonakilty (1977) complete the list of double-winning teams.
Club sides Argideen Rangers, Ballinascarthy and O'Donovan Rossa also hold the distinction of being dual divisional junior championship-winning teams, however, these were not achieved in a single calendar season.
External links
References
- Farr, Derry (22 September 2019). "History makers... St James deliver a West Cork junior football title to deny Ballinscarthy the double". Echo Live. Retrieved 23 September 2019.