2026 Down county football team season
| 2026 season | |
|---|---|
| Manager | Conor Laverty |
| Stadium | Páirc Esler, Newry |
| Dr McKenna Cup | Group Stage |
The following is a summary of Down county football team's 2026 season.
Competitions
During pre-season Down competed in the McKenna Cup, with the main season consisting of the National Football League Division 3, the Ulster Championship and either the Tailteann Cup or the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.
The draw for the 2026 Dr McKenna Cup took place on 2 December 2025.[1][2]
Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PR | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Tyrone
|
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 31 | 1.194 | 4 | Advance to semi-final |
| 2 |  Down[a]
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 18 | 0.778 | 2 | |
| 3 |  Armagh
|
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 19 | 0.895 | 0 |
Source: Ulster GAA
Notes:
Notes:
Fixtures
| 7 January 2026 Group Stage | Armagh | 3-10 - 0-10 | Down | Armagh |
| 19:30 IWT (UTC) | O O’Neill (1-2), T Kelly (1-1), S Conlon (1-1), B Hughes (0-1), J McElroy (0-1), D Magee (0-1), C McConville (0-1), R Duffy (0-1) | Report | P Havern (0-3), S Loughran (0-2), D Guinness (0-1), T Close (0-1), E Brown (0-1), A Crimmins (0-1), P McPolin (0-1) | Stadium: Athletic Grounds Referee: James Lewis (Fermanagh) |
| 11 January 2026 Group Stage | Tyrone | 0-18 - 1-11 | Down | Pomeroy |
| 13:30 IWT (UTC) | Ethan Jordan (0-7), Michael Conroy (0-4), Mattie Donnelly (0-3), Joseph Oguz (0-1), Joey Clarke (0-1), Ronan Cassidy (0-1), Aidan Donaghy (0-1) | Report | Pat Havern (0-8), Donal Scullion (1-1), John McGeough (0-1), Daniel Guinness (0-1) | Stadium: Plunkett Park Referee: Conor Dourneen (Cavan) |
National Football League Division 3
Official fixtures for the 2026 National League were announced on 4 December 2025.[4][5]
Fixtures
Win Draw Loss Postponed/Cancelled
| Date | Round | Home | Score | Away | Ground | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday 24 January | Group | Down | 2-19 v 2-14 | Clare | Pairc Esler, Newry | [6] |
| Saturday 31 January | Group | Limerick | 1-14 v 0-18 | Down | Páirc na nGael, Limerick | [7] |
| Saturday 14 February | Group | Down | 2-15 v 1-15 | Westmeath | Pairc Esler, Newry | [8] |
| Sunday 22 February | Group | Wexford | Down | Wexford Park, Wexford | ||
| Saturday 28 February | Group | Down | Fermanagh | Pairc Esler, Newry | ||
| Sunday 15 March | Group | Sligo | Down | Markievicz Park, Sligo | ||
| Sunday 22 March | Group | Down | Laois | Pairc Esler, Newry |
Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Down
|
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 64 | 55 | +9 | 6 | Advance to NFL Division 3 Final and promotion to 2027 NFL Division 2 |
| 2 |  Wexford
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 56 | 39 | +17 | 4 | |
| 3 |  Westmeath
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 63 | 60 | +3 | 4 | |
| 4 |  Limerick
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 48 | 48 | 0 | 3 | |
| 5 |  Laois
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 40 | 47 | −7 | 3 | |
| 6 |  Sligo
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 52 | 53 | −1 | 2 | |
| 7 |  Clare
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 64 | 68 | −4 | 2 | Relegation to 2027 NFL Division 4 |
| 8 | Fermanagh
|
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 45 | 62 | −17 | 0 |
Reports
Round 1
| Down | 2-19 - 2-14 | Clare |
|---|---|---|
| P Havern (0-06), O Murdock (1-02), D Guinness (0-05), J McGeough (1-01), C Doherty (0-03), S Annett (0-01), A Crimmins (0-01) | Report | M McInerney (1-03), C Brennan (1-00), D Bohannon (0-02), D Coughlan (0-02), S Ryan (0-02), A Griffin (0-02), B McNamara (0-02), C Murray (0-01) |
Referee: Conor Dourneen (Cavan)
Round 2
| Limerick | 1-14 - 0-18 | Down |
|---|---|---|
| Eliah O’Riordan (0-05), James Naughton (0-04f), Danny Neville (1-00), Robbie Childs (0-02), Barry Coleman (0-01), Andrew Meade (0-01), Paul Maher (0-01) | Report | Daniel Guinness (0-05), Pat Havern (0-03), Ceilum Doherty (0-03), Shane Annett (0-02), Pearse McPolin (0-02), Odhran Murdock (0-01), Ryan McEvoy (0-01), Jamie Doran (0-01) |
Referee: Fergal Kelly (Longford)
Round 3
| Down | 2-15 - 1-15 | Westmeath |
|---|---|---|
| J McGeough (1-01), C Doherty (0-04), R Magill (1-00), D Guinness (0-03), O Murdock (0-03), A Crimmins (0-03), P McPolin (0-01) | Report | L Loughlin (0-06), B Cooney (1-01), R Forde (0-03), R Connellan (0-02), S McCartan (0-01), R Wallace (0-01), S Baker (0-01) |
Referee: Conor Dourneen (Cavan)
Ulster Senior Football Championship
The draw for the 2026 Ulster Championship took place on 27 November 2025.[9][10]
Fixtures
Bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||||||||
 Derry
| |||||||||||||||||||
 Antrim
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Quarter-final winner | |||||||||||||||||||
| Quarter-final winner | |||||||||||||||||||
 Monaghan
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Cavan
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Semi-final winner | |||||||||||||||||||
| Semi-final winner | |||||||||||||||||||
 Donegal
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Down
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Quarter-final winner | |||||||||||||||||||
| Armagh
| Quarter-final winner | ||||||||||||||||||
| Tyrone
| Fermanagh
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Preliminary winner | |||||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ "2026 Bank of Ireland Dr McKenna Cup fixtures confirmed". Ulster GAA. 2 December 2025.
- ^ "Armagh v Tyrone to open returning McKenna Cup". BBC Sport. 2 December 2025.
- ^ "Fermanagh and Armagh docked McKenna Cup points". RTE. 9 January 2026.
- ^ "Full list of 2026 GAA National League fixtures in football and hurling". BBC Sport. 4 December 2025.
- ^ "GAA Master Fixtures schedule for 2026". GAA. 3 December 2025.
- ^ "Down come good in second half to lower Banner". RTE. 24 January 2026.
- ^ "Shane Annett to the rescue as Down sneak past Limerick". RTE. 31 January 2026.
- ^ "Down narrowly avoid disaster against Westmeath". RTE. 14 February 2026.
- ^ "2026 Provincial Football Championships draws". GAA. 27 November 2025.
- ^ "2026 SFC provincial draws: Armagh and Tyrone in early season Ulster showdown". RTE. 28 November 2025.