It was a weekend that will be talked about for years in GAA club football circles—a spellbinding, topsy-turvy stretch from October 10th to 12th, 2025, where the giants of the game fell one after another. The very fabric of the county championships across Ireland was shaken as eight established powerhouses tumbled out, leaving fans breathless and pundits scrambling to make sense of the carnage. If ever there was proof that reputation counts for little once the whistle blows, this was it.
Let’s start in Derry, where Glen, the All-Ireland champions from 2023 and one of the most heavily favoured sides to lift the John McLoughlin Cup, saw their dreams dashed in dramatic fashion. O’Donovan Rossa Magherafelt, under the stewardship of Gavin Devlin, produced a performance for the ages, blowing Glen apart 4-15 to 1-14 at Owenbeg. Goals from Conor McCluskey, Caolan Higgins, and Zach Gavigan set the tone as Rossa surged to a 2-12 to 0-7 half-time lead. Glen, who had failed to reach the county final for the first time since 2020, simply had no answer to the relentless Rossa attack. As the final whistle sounded, Glen’s hopes of regaining the Derry title evaporated, and Magherafelt booked their place in the decider against holders Newbridge, who had themselves edged Slaughtneil 0-21 to 1-16 in a pulsating semi-final. Newbridge’s early dominance, with a 0-15 to 0-8 half-time lead, was nearly undone by a second-half surge from Slaughtneil, inspired by veteran Patsy Bradley and a penalty goal from Shane McGuigan, but the champions held on by the slimmest of margins.
Meanwhile in Galway, Corofin’s iron grip on the county championship was finally broken. Salthill-Knocknacarra, with a late goal, overcame the three-in-a-row chasing champions 1-17 to 1-15 at Pearse Stadium. For only the third time in 12 years, Corofin won’t feature in the county final—a testament to the shifting sands of club football power.
Armagh provided perhaps the most jaw-dropping drama of the weekend. Madden, having endured three successive semi-final heartbreaks, finally broke through by defeating reigning champions Clann Éireann 0-14 to 0-11 on Friday night. Niall Grimley set the tone with a point inside ten seconds, but it was the heroics of goalkeeper Jamie Sheridan, who pulled off a crucial stoppage-time save to deny Conor Turbitt, that sealed Madden’s first county final appearance since 1998. The following day, Cullyhanna St Patrick’s staged a comeback for the ages against Crossmaglen Rangers. Down by nine points at one stage, Cullyhanna roared back, helped by a brace of two-pointers from Aidan Nugent, to win 1-21 to 0-23. Crossmaglen, big favourites to reclaim the title lost in 2024, were left in disbelief as Rian O’Neill’s late free fell short and Cullyhanna celebrated their first final in nine years. As the dust settled, a novel pairing of Madden and Cullyhanna was confirmed for the county decider, a matchup few would have predicted at the season’s onset.
In Kerry, the biggest shock of all unfolded. East Kerry, led by the mercurial David Clifford, were left reeling as Rathmore handed them a 1-20 to 0-9 defeat in the quarter-final. Rathmore’s 14-point margin, built on an astonishing 0-14 unanswered in the second half, sent shockwaves through the Kingdom. For East Kerry, perennial contenders, it was a humbling exit and a reminder that nothing in club football is guaranteed.
The upsets kept coming in Antrim, where Dunloy Cuchullains, better known for their hurling exploits, stunned Erin’s Own Cargin 3-12 to 2-8 in the county final. Dunloy, led by captain Seaan Elliott who notched 1-8, lifted their first football title since 1936. Cargin, who had dominated the county for the past decade and were bidding for a remarkable four-in-a-row, could only watch as history slipped through their fingers. The McCann brothers, Mick and Tomás, tried to rally Cargin with late goals, but the deficit proved too great.
Cavan’s back-to-back champions Gowna were next to fall, outclassed by Kingscourt Stars 2-16 to 0-13 in the county final. Kingscourt hadn’t lifted the Oliver Plunkett Cup in ten years, but two late goals sealed a sweet revenge for their 2023 final defeat to Gowna. The Stars’ resurgence added yet another chapter to a weekend defined by the triumph of the underdog.
In Tyrone, the drama was no less intense. Errigal Ciarán, fresh off a 2024 All-Ireland final run and hoping for back-to-back county titles, were edged out by Trillick 1-13 to 1-11 at O’Neills Healy Park. No team has retained the O’Neill Cup in twenty years, and Errigal’s hopes were dashed by a determined Trillick side who seized the moment with late points from Daire Gallagher and James Garrity. Earlier, Carrickmore and Loughmacrory had played out a thrilling 1-16 to 0-19 draw in the other semi-final, ensuring the excitement would spill into a replay.
Elsewhere, the Ulster Club Championship landscape was dramatically altered. Of the top eight teams in the betting for the Seamus McFerran Cup, only three remain after this weekend’s carnage. Defending county champions Errigal Ciarán, Glen, Clann Éireann, Crossmaglen, and Slaughtneil all crashed out, leaving the door wide open for new contenders. As one report noted, "A new name will be on the Gerry Fagan Cup at the end of the month when Cullyhanna meet Madden."
Across the board, the weekend was a celebration of unpredictability. From Magherafelt’s steely determination in Derry to Madden’s breakthrough in Armagh, from Dunloy’s historic Antrim win to Rathmore’s demolition job in Kerry, the message was clear: club football is alive and kicking, and the script is never set in stone. The old guard may have fallen, but the stage is now set for a fresh cast of heroes to write their names into county folklore.
As the county finals loom and the Ulster Club Championship picture comes into sharper focus, fans are left with one burning question—who’s next to fall, and who will seize the moment? After a weekend like this, nothing can be taken for granted. The only certainty is that more drama awaits.
