2026 Down Intermediate Football Championship
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| County | Down |
| Province | Ulster |
| Year | 2026 |
| Trophy | WJ Farrell Cup |
| Sponsor | The Parador Lodge |
| Teams | 16 |
| Defending champions |  Saval |
| Qualify for | Ulster Club IFC |
The 2026 Down Intermediate Football Championship is the 38th official edition of Down GAA's secondary Gaelic football tournament for intermediate clubs in County Down. 16 teams compete, with the winning team representing Down in the Ulster Intermediate Club Football Championship. The tournament operated a double elimination format for the opening two rounds of the championship, with the winners and early round losers rejoining at the quarter final stage.
Saval won the 2025 edition,[1] and as per competition rules, did not defend their title as they qualified to play in the Senior Championship.
Participating teams
[edit]The following teams took part in the 2026 edition of the Down Intermediate Football Championship.[2]
| Division Two | Division Three | Division Four | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 An Riocht |
Final | Atticall |
Round 2B |  Ardglass |
Round 2B |
 Annaclone |
Semi Final | Darragh Cross |
Round 3 |  Ballymartin |
Round 2B |
 Clann na Banna |
Quarter Final |  Dromara |
Round 3 |  Tullylish |
Round 3 |
 Longstone |
Semi Final | Liatroim Fontenoys |
Quarter Final | ||
| Rostrevor |
Final | Newry Shamrocks |
Quarter Final | ||
| St John Bosco |
Round 2B | ||||
 St Johns |
Quarter Final | ||||
| Teconnaught |
Round 3 | ||||
Bold denotes a team still active in the competition
Round 1
[edit]The 16 participating teams were placed into an open draw. The winning teams advance to Round 2A, while losing sides proceed to Round 2B.
| 20 August 2026 Round 1 | Atticall |
3–13 – 3–17 (a.e.t.) |
Tullylish |
Warrenpoint | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:15 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc Liam Uí hÍr | ||||
| Referee: Kevin McGrath
|
| 21 August 2026 Round 1 | An Riocht |
6–19 – 0–09 | Ballymartin |
Longstone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Longstone Park | ||||
| Referee: Mark Turley
|
| 21 August 2026 Round 1 | Teconnaught |
1–18 – 1–10 | Dromara |
Drumnaquoile | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Pairc Naomh Eoin | ||||
| Referee: John McMullan
|
| 22 August 2026 Round 1 | Longstone |
2–15 – 1–12 | Darragh Cross |
Newcastle | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Patrick's Park | ||||
| Referee: Ronan Barry
|
| 22 August 2026 Round 1 | St John Bosco |
6–07 – 1–24 | Liatroim Fontenoys |
Drumgath | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16:30 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Patrick's Park | ||||
| Referee: Sean Cunningham
|
| 23 August 2026 Round 1 | Ardglass |
3–08 – 6–19 | Newry Shamrocks |
Dromara | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Michael's Park | ||||
| Referee: Neil Cousins
|
Round 2
[edit]Round 2A
[edit]Round 2A will feature the eight winning teams from Round 1, with an open draw to determine the fixtures. The winning teams progress directly to the quarter-finals, with the losing teams proceeding to Round 3.
| 29 August 2026 Round 2A | Newry Shamrocks |
0–10 – 0–11 | Liatroim Fontenoys |
Mayobridge | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13:30 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Patrick's Park | ||||
| Referee: Ronan Barry
|
| 30 August 2026 Round 2A | Tullylish |
0–10 – 5–22 | Rostrevor |
Glenn | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: John Martin Park | ||||
| Referee: Adrian McAteer
|
Round 2B
[edit]Round 2B sees the eight losing teams from Round 1 compete for a place in Round 3. The losing teams from this round will be eliminated from the competition.
| 29 August 2026 Round 2B | Dromara |
1–14 – 0–08 | Ballymartin |
Drumaness | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Colman's Park | ||||
| Referee: Kevin McGrath
|
| 29 August 2026 Round 2B | Darragh Cross |
0–24 – 2–16 (a.e.t.) |
Atticall |
Glasdrumman | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:30 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Mary's Park | ||||
| Referee: Declan Ryan
|
| 30 August 2026 Round 2B | St John Bosco |
2–13 – 1–21 | Clann na Banna |
Hilltown | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Clonduff Park | ||||
| Referee: Oliver Burke
|
Relegation Semi-Finals
[edit]The 4 losers of Round 2B play each other in the Relegation Semi-Finals. The 2 winners will secure their Intermediate status for 2027, while the 2 losers will face-off in the Relegation Final.
| 10 September 2026 Relegation Play-Off Semi Final | Ballymartin |
1–17 – 1–02 | Ardglass |
Dundrum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:15 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc Sean O'Caoilte | ||||
| Referee: Neil Cousins
|
| 10 September 2026 Relegation Play-Off Semi Final | St John Bosco |
0–13 – 0–14 | Atticall |
Tullylish | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:15 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc na nÓg | ||||
| Referee: Ronan Barry
|
Relegation Final
[edit]The winner of the Relegation Final will maintain their Intermediate status into 2027, while the loser will be relegated to the 2027 Down J.F.C.
| Relegation Play-Off Final | Ardglass |
v | St John Bosco |
||
|
|
Round 3
[edit]Round 3 is a supplementary round for teams to have a second chance at reaching the quarter-finals. This round features teams that have lost once so far in this year's competition, either winning in Round 1 and losing in Round 2A, or losing in Round 1 but winning their Round 2B fixture. The losing teams in this round are eliminated from this year's competition.
This round is seeded, meaning that in each fixture a Round 2A losing team will face a Round 2B winning team.
| 4 September 2026 Round 3 | Tullylish |
3–11 – 4–20 | St Johns |
Dundrum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc Sean O'Caoilte | ||||
| Referee: Neil Cousins
|
| 6 September 2026 Round 3 | Newry Shamrocks |
3–15 – 2–16 | Darragh Cross |
Castlewellan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Malachy's Park | ||||
| Referee: Brian Higgins
|
| 6 September 2026 Round 3 | Teconnaught |
1–12 – 1–17 | Clann na Banna |
Carryduff | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc Aodha Dhuibh | ||||
| Referee: Mark Turley
|
| 7 September 2026 Round 3 | An Riocht |
1–12 – 1–10 | Dromara |
Liatroim | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Fontenoy Park | ||||
| Referee: Colm Gribben
|
Quarter-finals
[edit]The quarter-finals see the two brackets rejoin, with the earlier Round 2A winners facing a Round 3 winner for a semi-final spot.
| 11 September 2026 Quarter-final | Longstone |
3–21 – 3–15 | Clann na Banna |
Dundrum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:15 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc Sean O'Caoilte | ||||
| Referee: Brian Higgins TV: Down GAA TV
|
| 13 September 2026 Quarter-final | Rostrevor |
1–14 – 0–12 | Newry Shamrocks |
Hilltown | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:45 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Clonduff Park | ||||
| Referee: Oliver Burke
|
| 13 September 2026 Quarter-final | Liatroim Fontenoys |
0–18 – 2–15 | An Riocht |
Castlewellan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:30 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: St Malachy's Park | ||||
| Referee: Jake Magill TV: Down GAA TV
|
| 14 September 2026 Quarter-final | Annaclone |
2–11 – 0–09 | St Johns |
Liatroim | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Fontenoy Park | ||||
| Referee: Declan Ryan TV: Down GAA TV
|
Semi-finals
[edit]The semi-finals will see the four winning sides face off for a place in this year's final. This round is an open draw from the four quarter-final winners.
| 26 September 2026 Semi-final | An Riocht |
1–19 – 2–15 | Annaclone |
Kilcoo | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:30 IST (UTC+1) | Venue: Páirc Eoghan Rua | ||||
| Referee: Eddie Cuthbert
|
Final
[edit]The final was played between the two semi-final winning teams, and took place at Páirc Esler, Newry.
References
[edit]- ↑ "Saval stick three in the net as they claim Intermediate crown". Newry Reporter. 18 October 2025. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
- ↑ "2026 Down Intermediate Football Championship". downgaa.net. 1 August 2026.