Most "came out of nowhere" All-Ireland champions?

[mountainboii]

I disagree with the person who said Down in '91. Your post is wildly inaccurate.

Down in 1991.

Hadn't won an All Ireland in 28 years.

It was 23.

Hadn't appeared in an Ulster final in the previous 5 years.

They were in the 86 final (five years previously) and lost narrowly to a very good Tyrone team which should have won the All Ireland.

Hadn't won an Ulster in 9/10 years.

They won the Ulster title in emphatic style in 1981 (ten years previously)
They also won the National League, which was a bigger achievement than even winning an Ulster title in those days given the paucity of strength in Ulster, in 1983.

You are conveniently leaving out the fact that in the previous few years Down's record included:
1986 - narrowly beaten in Ulster final and won the All Ireland senior club title
1987 - won the All Ireland minor title
1988 - All Ireland club title

There were also the All Ireland winning minor and Under 21 teams of 77 and 79 - the minors of 77 were still only 31/32 by 1991 remember.

My own vote is Galway 1998. Also, Meath 99, while they had pedigree, were massive long shots at the start of the championship.

Winning an AI club title is very tenuous indicator of future success for the county team. By this logic the Dubs should be odds on to win Sam this year.

[lynchbhoy]

1. last years tie-roan team
2. galway 98
3. Derry 93
4. monaghan 2009 

[eireogatron]

Down in 91 is up there. Drung is full of it and nit picking by a year at a time  on the argument. The fact is they hadn't been in an Ulster final since 5 years previously, and hadn't won it since 10 years previously. Hardly a team building towards success. Judging by your parameters Derry have been building steadily towards an All Ireland this year.

Winning club titles means nothing for AI county success. Also, a team who's perceived "best" players are 31/32 is a negative indication of strength not a positive one.

Donegal in 92 and Derry 93, although not necessarily coming from nowhere could be argued as "surprise" winners.

[longrunsthefox]

I know it is not county but there is a club team Moortown in Tyrone lost the semi-final of the senior championhsip by 21 to one in 1991. They were played off the park absolutely by Coalisland Fianna. Clonoe beat Coalisland in the final and the next year Moortown won the championship beating Clonoe along the way. They haven't won it since.

[sammymaguire]

if you are talking senior county football, there's never been one to come out of nowhere unless we are going back to the beginning of when the Championship was being held, (maybe Donegal in 1992?) outsiders chances of winning the Sam Maguire have always been slim and will become even slimmer as time goes on as Wexford, Fermanagh, Leitrim, Sligo, Limerick, Louth, even Monaghan, Laois, Westmeath, Kildare have shown in the last how many years.... even with the introduction of the back door system... dream on minnows (and I'm a Fermanagh man)

[passedit]

if you are talking senior county football, there's never been one to come out of nowhere unless we are going back to the beginning of when the Championship was being held, (maybe Donegal in 1992?) outsiders chances of winning the Sam Maguire have always been slim and will become even slimmer as time goes on as Wexford, Fermanagh, Leitrim, Sligo, Limerick, Louth, even Monaghan, Laois, Westmeath, Kildare have shown in the last how many years.... even with the introduction of the back door system... dream on minnows (and I'm a Fermanagh man)

Donegal had been in the AISF two years previously and their Ulster final defeat to Down the previous year was a major shock, so no not out of nowhere.

Similarly Derry 93 would have considered themselves unluckly to have lost narrowly to the eventual AI champs in the previous two years and would certainly have considered themselves better than both (however misguidedly).

[Canalman]

The 2 that come to mind are:


1983 Dublin (hammered out the gate by Offaly in 1982 L Final)

1996 Meath (same story as above)


1974 Dublin in so far as I am told was also a surprise.

Maybe Galway in 1998 also.

[longrunsthefox]

 I remember Dubs in 1974 and was big time feeling of out of nowhere

[Drung]

I just pointed out that his post was inaccurate, which it was.

On this point:

Also, a team who's perceived "best" players are 31/32 is a negative indication of strength not a positive one

Really? Even when you have won the All Ireland Minor title four years previously?
And back to back Ulster Under 21 titles in 84 and 85?
And back to back Ulster Minor titles in 86 and 87?
And the Hogan Cup in 86 and 88?
I would think that with a super talented bunch of 21/22/23 year olds, having a few quality 30-somethings who have won it all bar the big one (All Ireland minor, U21 and NFL) would do the youngsters good and make for a neat blend.
Imagine. Very few of that Down squad wouldn't have had a national medal of some sort going into the '91 campaign.
The squad was littered with All Ireland Minor, Under 21, NFL and Club medallists.

If a current squad was entering the 09 championship with the same track record as Down entered the 91 championship, this would be their pedigree:

All Ireland Minor 95
All Ireland Under 21 title 97
National League 01
Hogan Cup 04, 06
Ulster Minor titles 04, 05
Ulster Under 21 titles 02, 03
All Ireland Minor title 05
All Ireland Senior club titles 04, 06
Narrowly beaten in 04 Ulster final to eventual All Ireland runners-up

So in short that's effectively three to four bunches of dual Ulster/ All Ireland winning players ranging in age from 21/22 to 31/32 or so.
They were a coming squad, a side on the rise having won everything in the game at every level bar senior.
No way anyone cane say they 'came from nowhere'.
It wasn't a case of "WHOA, WHERE DID THIS DOWN TEAM COME FROM THAT HAS WON FIVE ALL IRELANDS AND EIGHT ULSTER TITLES AT VARIOUS GRADES IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS"!!!

And someone said I'm talking dung? Think before you post.

[Gabriel_Hurl]

Is that you, Pete McGrath? 

[passedit]

Is that you, Pete McGrath? 

a simple test should clear this up.

Pete Drung, what is this?



BTW, by Drung's reasoning no one will be shocked when Down waltz away with this years all ireland sending the O Se bros into retirement in the process.

[armaghniac]

Most "came out of nowhere" All-Ireland champions?

Armagh, 2009. 

[fred the red]

Armagh in 2002- they came from a world where football wasnt invented

[mckieran]

Galway in 98 probably deserve a mention. We weren't even supposed to win our first game up in Castlebar and were underdogs I think in every game bar maybe the Roscommon ones. Plus it came at the end of a long bad period for Connacht teams in general.

Underdogs against Mayo, Derry & Kildare. Not so against Leitrim & Roscommon.
As a previous poster mentioned, Galway really put it up to a very good Mayo team in 1997 so I dont really think that "they came from nowhere". A lot of that team were regarded as outstanding underage players and I recall that many in Galway were quietly confident of doing well in 1998.

[muppet]

Roscommon 1943...had been Junior till 1940, first Connacht title since 1915.
Down 1960
Dublin 1974
Does Mayo 1936/1950/1951 count seeing as it's  the middle of nowhere ?

I spent a year in Roscommon. I think it was a Sunday.