The 2016

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

was the 129th edition of the GAA's premier inter-county

gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by ki ...

tournament since its establishment in 1887. 33 teams took part. 31 of the 32

Counties of Ireland The counties of Ireland ( Irish: ) are historic administrative divisions of the island into thirty-two units. They began as Norman structures, and as the powers exercised by the Cambro-Norman barons and the Old English nobility waned over tim ...

participated, with Kilkenny, as in previous years, declining to take part.

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

again competed. The winning team,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

(who defeated

Mayo Mayo often refers to: * Mayonnaise, often shortened to "mayo" * Mayo Clinic, a medical center in Rochester, Minnesota, United States Mayo may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Mayo Peak, Marie Byrd Land Australia * Division of Mayo, an A ...

by a single point after a replay), received the

Sam Maguire Cup The Sam Maguire Cup ( ga, Chorn Sam Mhic Uidhir), often referred to as Sam or The Sam , is a trophy awarded annually by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) to the team that wins the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the main competiti ...

. It was the first time Dublin, as defending champions, had retained the trophy since the 1977 final.

Format

Provincial Championships format

Connacht,

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following th ...

and

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label=Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

each organise a

provincial Provincial may refer to: Government & Administration * Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country * Provincial city (disambiguation) * Provincial minister (disambiguation) * Provincial Secretary, a position in Can ...

championship. All provincial matches are knock-out. All teams eliminated from their provincial championships with the exception of

, for logistical reasons, enter the All-Ireland qualifiers.

Qualifiers format

Twenty eight of the twenty nine teams beaten in the provincial championships enter the All-Ireland qualifiers, which are knockout. The sixteen teams eliminated before their provincial semi-finals play eight matches in round 1, with the winners of these games playing the eight beaten provincial semi-finalists in round 2. The eight winning teams from round 2 play-off against each other in round 3, with the four winning teams facing the four beaten provincial finalists in round 4 to complete the

double-elimination A double-elimination tournament is a type of elimination tournament competition in which a participant ceases to be eligible to win the tournament's championship upon having lost ''two'' games or matches. It stands in contrast to a single-elimina ...

format. Further details of the format are included with each qualifier round listed below.

All-Ireland format

The four provincial champions play the four winners of round 4 of the qualifiers in the quarter-finals. Two semi-finals and a final follow. All matches are knock-out. Any game that ends in a draw is replayed. If a replay ends in a draw, extra time is played.

Changes from 2015 championship

Referees were instructed to add on 20 seconds for the introduction of a substitute and 20 seconds for each instance of a goalkeeper or defender going upfield for a placed ball attempt. Previously there was no specific provision for these two events which led to instances of deliberate time-wasting by teams who were leading. 30 seconds were also to be added each time the

Hawk-Eye Hawk-Eye is a computer vision system used in numerous sports such as cricket, tennis, Gaelic football, badminton, hurling, rugby union, association football and volleyball, to visually track the trajectory of the ball and display a profile o ...

score detection system was utilised.

Broadcast rights

RTÉ, the national broadcaster in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, provided the majority of the live television coverage of the championship in the third year of a deal running from 2014 until 2016. A number of matches were also broadcast by

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It h ...

, with Sky having exclusive rights to some games.

Live broadcast matches

The broadcast schedule for matches shown live on television in Ireland follows -

Provincial Championships

Connacht Senior Football Championship

Leinster Senior Football Championship

Munster Senior Football Championship

----

Ulster Senior Football Championship

All-Ireland Series

Qualifiers

A and B teams

An A and B system for the qualifier draws was introduced in 2014 and was retained. The teams were designated as A or B depending on which half of their provincial championships they played in. Although some teams receive byes in the early provincial rounds, their position in the round in which they entered the competition was usually determined by the provincial draw, resulting in most teams being designated as A or B randomly. For example, each of the four provinces had two semi-finals – one between two teams designated A and one between two teams designated B. The beaten semi-finalists in each province were always one A team and one B team. In all qualifier rounds A teams played A teams and B teams played B teams. Usually the A teams played their provincial games before the B teams, which allowed the A qualifier games to be scheduled a week before the B qualifier games.

Round 1

In the first round of the qualifiers sixteen of the seventeen teams beaten in the preliminary rounds or quarter-finals of the

championships competed. New York did not enter the qualifiers. Four A teams played four A teams, while four B teams played four B teams. The round 1 draw was unrestricted − if two teams had played each other in a provincial match they could be drawn to meet again, with the winner of the provincial match receiving home advantage. The eight round 1 winners played the eight beaten provincial semi-finalists in round 2 of the qualifiers. The following teams were entered into round 1. ; Flag of Connacht

Leitrim

;

Carlow Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2016 census, it had a combined urban and rural population of 24,272. The River Barrow flows through the town and forms the historic bounda ...

Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 ...

Louth

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; ga, Cill Mhantáin , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; non, Víkingaló) is the county town of County Wicklow in Ireland. It is located south of Dublin on the east coast of the island. According to the 2016 census, it has ...

Longford Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,008 according to the 2016 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meet ...

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland ...

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N1 ...

;

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

;

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , " Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the ...

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. Th ...

Antrim Antrim may refer to: Boats *Antrim 20, an American sailboat design People * Donald Antrim (born 1958), American writer * "Henry Antrim", an alias used by Henry McCarty, better known as Billy the Kid, a 19th-century outlaw * Harry Antrim (1884 ...

Down Down most often refers to: * Down, the relative direction opposed to up * Down (gridiron football), in American/Canadian football, a period when one play takes place * Down feather, a soft bird feather used in bedding and clothing * Downland, a ty ...

Fermanagh Historically, Fermanagh ( ga, Fir Manach), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of ...

*During the match Laois made seven substitutions, one more than the permitted six. On 21 June 2016 the CCCC declared the match void and scheduled a replay for 2 July. ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Round 2

In the second round of the qualifiers the eight winning teams from Round 1A and Round 1B played the eight beaten provincial semi-finalists. The round 2 draw was unrestricted − if two teams had played each other in a provincial match they could be drawn to meet again, with the winner of the provincial match receiving home advantage. The eight winners of these matches played each other in Round 3. The following teams took part in this round - ; Colours of Carlow

Leitrim ; Colours of Cavan

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Ba ...

Clare Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * C ...

Meath Meath may refer to: General * County Meath, Republic of Ireland **Kingdom of Meath, medieval precursor of the county ** List of kings of Meath ** Meath GAA, including the intercounty football and hurling teams ** Diocese of Meath, in the Roman Cath ...

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

;

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cent ...

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Ireland. It also provides the name of its civil parish and barony. The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7,678. The town is on the N2 road from Dublin to Derry and Letterken ...

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Round 3

In the third round of the qualifiers winning teams from round 2A played against winning teams from round 2A, while winning teams from round 2B played against winning teams from round 2B. Round 3 rules did not allow two teams that had played each other in a provincial match to meet again. The four winners of these matches played the four beaten provincial finalists in Round 4. The following teams took part in this round - ; Colours of Cavan

;

---- ---- ---- ----

Round 4

In the fourth round of the qualifiers, the four winning teams of Round 3A and Round 3B played the four beaten provincial finalists. Round 4 rules did not allow two teams that had played each other in a provincial match to meet again if such a pairing could be avoided. The four winners of these matches played the provincial champions in the All-Ireland Quarter-finals. The following teams took part in this round - ; Colours of Clare

;

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who bui ...

Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

;

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland ...

Westmeath "Noble above nobility" , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = , subdivis ...

Quarter-finals

The four provincial champions played the winners from Round 4 of the qualifiers. Draw rules – 1) Two teams who met in a provincial final could not meet again 2) If one of the provincial champions had already met one of the qualifiers in an earlier match then those two teams could not be drawn together if such a pairing could be avoided.

Semi-finals

There was no draw for the semi-finals as the fixtures were pre-determined on a three yearly rotation. This rotation ensured that a

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

's champions played the champions of all the other provinces once every three years in the semi-finals if they each won their quarter-finals and prevented two provincial champions meeting in the semi-finals in successive years. If a qualifier team defeated a provincial winner in a quarter-final, the qualifier team took that provincial winner's place in the semi-final.

Final

Final Replay

Championship statistics

*All scores correct as of 1 October 2016

Top scorer overall

Top scorer in a single game

Miscellaneous

beat

for the first time since 1944. *

Kerry Kerry or Kerri may refer to: * Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name) Places * Kerry, Queensland, Australia * County Kerry, Ireland ** Kerry Airport, an international airport in County ...

were the first team since

(1987–1990) to win a 4th Munster title in a row. * In the old system All Ireland series we would have had a Galway vs Tyrone All Ireland semi-final. * The All-Ireland final ends in a draw and goes to a replay for the first time since 2000.

Scoring events

Widest winning margin: 19 *

2-22 – 0-9

(Ulster SFC quarter-final) Most goals in a match: 7 *

Tyrone Tyrone may refer to: * Kingdom of Tyrone or Tír Eoghain, a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland * County Tyrone, a county in Northern Ireland * Earl of Tyrone, a title in the Peerage of Ireland * Tyrone (name), a male given name Places Canada * Tyrone, ...

5-18 – 2-17

(Ulster SFC semi-final replay) Most points in a match: 41 *

3-17 – 2-24

(Round 1B qualifier – A.E.T.) Most goals by one team in a match: 5 *

5-18 – 2-17

(Ulster SFC semi-final replay) Highest aggregate score: 56 points *

3-17 – 2-24

(Round 1B qualifier – A.E.T.) *

5-18 – 2-17

(Ulster SFC semi-final replay) Lowest aggregate score: 17 points *

0-08 – 0-09

(Leinster SFC quarter-final)

Stadia and locations

Referees Panel

:''As announced in April 2016:'' # Ciaran Branagan (Down) #

Barry Cassidy Barry Cassidy is a Gaelic football referee. An inter-county championship referee since 2012, Cassidy has been described as the top referee in Ulster. A member of the Derry GAA club Bellaghy, Cassidy refereed the inaugural Tailteann Cup final. ...

(Derry) #

David Coldrick David Coldrick is a Gaelic football referee from County Meath. A member of the Blackhall Gaels club, he has refereed four finals of the All-Ireland SFC. Seán Moran, writing in ''The Irish Times'' in 2015, described Coldrick as "one of the le ...

(Meath) #

Maurice Deegan Maurice Deegan (born 1972) is a former inter-county referee from County Laois. A member of the Stradbally club, he refereed three finals of the All-Ireland SFC. Career Deegan began refereeing when the Stradbally club secretary asked if he woul ...

(Laois) #

Marty Duffy Martin Duffy is a Gaelic football referee from County Sligo. He is from Enniscrone. He is a member of the Kilgass GAA club and has served as its chairperson. He is the brother of Michael Duffy, also a referee. Career Duffy refereed the 2009 A ...

(Sligo) #

David Gough David Gough ( ; born 1983) is a Gaelic football referee from County Meath. He is a member of the Slane club. His four umpires are father Eugene, brother Stephen, uncle Terry and cousin Dean, who have assisted him with every game since he started. ...

(Meath) # Rory Hickey (Clare) #

Pádraig Hughes Pádraig Hughes is a Gaelic football referee from Armagh. He is a regular member of the Gaelic Athletic Association's Championship Panels for inter-county games. Hughes injured himself against Eamonn Doherty when he was officiating the Dubl ...

(Armagh) #

Sean Hurson Sean Hurson is a Gaelic football referee. He is a member of the Galbally Parses club in County Tyrone. He was appointed to referee the 2022 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, becoming the first Tyrone man to do so since Paddy Devli ...

(Tyrone) # Fergal Kelly (Longford) #

Eddie Kinsella Eddie Kinsella is a former Gaelic football referee from County Laois. He is a member of the Courtwood club. Kinsella refereed the 2014 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final between Donegal and Kerry at Croke Park. Before this he had r ...

(Laois) #

Conor Lane Conor Lane is a Gaelic football referee. He is a member of the Banteer/Lyre club in County Cork and has refereed three All-Ireland SFC finals. Career Conor Lane was appointed to the national panel of referees for the senior championship panel ...

(Cork) #

Joe McQuillan Joe McQuillan is a Gaelic football referee. He is a member of the Kill Shamrocks club in County Cavan. McQuillan has refereed four All-Ireland finals: the 2011 decider between Dublin and Kerry, the 2013 decider between Dublin and Mayo, the 20 ...

(Cavan) # Noel Mooney (Cavan), first year #

Paddy Neilan Paddy Neilan is a Gaelic football referee. Early life He hails from the St Faithleach's club in County Roscommon. Career He refereed the 2017 Munster Senior Football Championship final. Dublin manager Jim Gavin criticised him after Kerr ...

(Roscommon) # Anthony Nolan (Wicklow) # Derek O'Mahoney (Tipperary) # Padraig O'Sullivan (Kerry) ;Linesman Panel (newly created): # James Bermingham (Cork) # Niall Cullen (Fermanagh) # Liam Devenney (Mayo) # Jerome Henry (Mayo) # John Hickey (Carlow) # Shaun McLaughlin (Donegal) # Martin McNally (Monaghan) # Cormac Reilly (Meath)

Awards

;''The Sunday Game'' Team of the Year ''

The Sunday Game ''The Sunday Game'' is RTÉ's main Gaelic games television programme. It is shown on RTÉ2 every Sunday during the Football Championship and Hurling Championship seasons. It is one of RTÉ2's longest-running shows, having been on air since ...

'' team of the year was picked on 1 October, the night of the final replay. Dublin's

Brian Fenton Brian Fenton (born 2 March 1994) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the Raheny club and for the Dublin county team. He was the 2018 and 2020 All Stars Footballer of the Year. Education and family His father (Brian senior), is from Spa, out ...

was named as ''The Sunday Game'' player of the year. *1. Stephen Cluxton (Dublin) *2. Brendan Harrison (Mayo) *3. Jonny Cooper (Dublin) *4. Philly McMahon (Dublin) *5. Lee Keegan (Mayo) *6. Colm Boyle (Mayo) *7. Patrick Durcan (Mayo) *8. Brian Fenton (Dublin) *9. Mattie Donnelly (Tyrone) *10. Kevin McLoughlin (Mayo) *11. Diarmuid Connolly (Dublin) *12. Ciarán Kilkenny (Dublin) *13. Paul Geaney (Kerry) *14. Michael Quinlivan (Tipperary) *15. Dean Rock (Dublin) ;All Star Team of the Year The '' All Star'' football team was announced on 3 November. *1. David Clarke (Mayo) *2. Brendan Harrison (Mayo) *3. Jonny Cooper (Dublin) *4. Philly McMahon (Dublin) *5. Lee Keegan (Mayo) *6. Colm Boyle (Mayo) *7. Ryan McHugh (Donegal) *8. Brian Fenton (Dublin) *9. Mattie Donnelly (Tyrone) *10.

Peter Harte Peter Harte is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for the Errigal Ciarán club and the Tyrone county team. He has played for Ireland in the 2015 International Rules Series and won an All Star Awards in 2016 and 2021. He is the nephew of ...

(Tyrone) *11. Diarmuid Connolly (Dublin) *12. Ciarán Kilkenny (Dublin) *13. Dean Rock (Dublin) *14. Michael Quinlivan (Tipperary) *15. Paul Geaney (Kerry)

References

{{GAA 2016

Format

Provincial Championships format

Qualifiers format

All-Ireland format

Changes from 2015 championship

Broadcast rights

Live broadcast matches

Provincial Championships

Connacht Senior Football Championship

Leinster Senior Football Championship

Munster Senior Football Championship

Ulster Senior Football Championship

All-Ireland Series

Qualifiers

A and B teams

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

Final Replay

Championship statistics

Top scorer overall

Top scorer in a single game

Miscellaneous

Scoring events

Stadia and locations

Referees Panel

Awards

See also

References