Championship starts in 12 days so any sort of debrief of the National Football League can really only have the shelf life of a cream bun. But still and all, games were played, mistakes were made, lives were lived. Herewith, then, is all the good and all the bad for each county from the 2025 league.
Antrim
The Good: Overcame Clare in brutal conditions on the weekend of Storm Éowyn.
The Bad: Lost tight games to Sligo and Laois when a win against either would have kept them in Division 3.
Armagh
The Good: The Ethan Rafferty-inspired win over Tyrone that ultimately kept them in Division 1.
The Bad: No sign of Rian O’Neill, which will surely count against them somewhere along the way.
Carlow
The Good: Started well and finished strong, unbeaten in the first two and last two games.
The Bad: Lost to the best three teams in the middle and saw half a dozen players and one of the backroom team leave the set-up.
Cavan
The Good: Gearóid McKiernan’s return has worked out. Four wins in a row gave them a shot at promotion from Division 2.
The Bad: Lost their first two games while grappling with the new rules. Panicked at the end against Cork.
Clare
The Good: Beat the two teams who got promoted ahead of them.
The Bad: Losing to Sligo was the killer. Even a draw would have seen them into Division 2.
Cork
The Good: Chris Óg Jones has flourished. Played their way out of relegation trouble by winning their last two games.
The bad: Finding themselves in bother in the first place with some sleepy displays.
Derry
The Good: The final day apart, they weren’t as bad as their results suggest. Lachlan Murray continues to find his feet.
The Bad: The Armagh hammering was unconscionable. Need injuries to clear up and the mood to improve.
Donegal
The Good: Michael Murphy’s return, the careful husbandry of the squad, the pull on the reins to avoid a league final.
The Bad: Very little to report. Oisin Gallen seems a bit subdued but that’s about it.
Down
The Good: Buoyed by Pat Havern’s two-pointers, they were the second-highest scorers in Division 2.
The Bad: Full of heart but still went down.
Dublin
The Good: Sean Bugler and Con O’Callaghan have looked unmarkable, Luke Breathnach is a find.
The Bad: So many doubts over so many positions. Went out with a whimper on the last day.
Fermanagh
The Good: Big comebacks against Laois and Sligo showed there’s nothing wrong with their spirit.
The Bad: Never really made a gallop at promotion until it was too late.
Galway
The Good: Kings of the two-pointer, lots of size around the middle. Johnny McGrath is relishing one-on-one defending.
The Bad: Lost feebly to Dublin and Kerry in the last two games. Shane Walsh’s back injury will need minding.
Kerry
The Good: Dylan Geaney has grabbed his chance, David Clifford has eased himself into the year for once.
The Bad: Could do without injuries to Seán O’Shea and Diarmuid O’Connor.
Kildare
The Good: Got promoted to Division 2, got the Kildare people back on board. Conceded less than last year’s league – no mean feat with the new rules.
The Bad: Made heavy weather of it, losing to Offaly and Clare down the stretch.
Laois
The Good: Consolidated Division 3 status after promotion. Damon Larkin has become a big leader.
The Bad: Coughed up a big half-time lead to lose to Clare – a win would have put a second promotion in a row on the table.
Leitrim
The Good: None.
The Bad: Players leaving, players getting injured, ritual hidings, the Fermanagh walkover, Steven Poacher’s ill-advised media tour. Nightmare few months.
Limerick
The Good: Winning a first league game in three years, following it up with promotion. James Naughton’s 4-12 against Waterford the highlight.
The Bad: Gave themselves a mountain to climb with no win from the first two.
London
The Good: A win at home and a win away. Would have been dream stuff a few seasons ago.
The Bad: Lost to all the teams around them, including Waterford.
Longford
The Good: Drew with Limerick first day out and had back-to-back wins in the middle rounds.
The Bad: Only Leitrim scored less than them in the whole country.
Louth
The Good: Kept their best for last, beating Meath on the final day to stay up.
The Bad: After a solid few seasons, looked a step below Monaghan, Roscommon and Cavan.
Mayo
The Good: Davitt Neary announced himself, Ryan O’Donoghue took over the leadership mantle, made the league final.
The Bad: Their supporters still largely seem to not be buying it.
Meath
The Good: Excellent wins over Cavan, Roscommon and Westmeath, with Jordan Morris outstanding.
The Bad: Monaghan showed them to be one-paced, Louth nobbled them. Morris’s injury is rotten luck.
Monaghan
The Good: Top scorers across the four divisions by a distance. Bounced straight back up to Division 1.
The Bad: Careless defeat to Down hints at a chink in their mentality.
Offaly
The Good: First win over Kildare since 2006 earned them promotion to Division 2.
The Bad: Late wobble against Clare could have been costly had the game gone on longer.
Roscommon
The Good: Found their way back up to Division 1 on the back of some fantastic early displays.
The Bad: So nearly made a mess of it, with only one win in the last four games.
Sligo
The Good: Unbeaten since February 16th, clearly on an upward curve. Niall Murphy has been outstanding.
The Bad: Gave themselves too much to do with three heavy defeats from their first three games.
Tipperary
The Good: Started well, unbeaten after the first three rounds, with Sean O’Connor in flying form.
The Bad: Lost to London in round four and haven’t stopped the rot yet.
Tyrone
The Good: Very unlucky to be relegated on seven points, showing some lovely combinations in the final day rout of Dublin.
The Bad: Still no sign of Paudie Hampsey. Not much future in the championship without their best man-marker.
Waterford
The Good: Beat Longford in Longford, their first away win in the league since 2021.
The Bad: Finished bottom of Division 4 once again.
Westmeath
The Good: Got the point they deserved with the last kick of the league, Kieran Martin’s stylish two-pointer finally earning them a draw.
The Bad: Lost three games in injury-time – you can only blame bad luck for so much.
Wexford
The Good: Qualified for promotion with a round to go. The only unbeaten team in the country. Meanest defence in the four divisions.
The Bad: There was no bad.
Wicklow
The Good: Dean Healy and Oisin MacGraynor have been outstanding.
The Bad: Showed promotion form most of the way but the defeat to London in Ruislip on the first weekend of February ultimately cost them.
