Teams 32 Captain Ray Silke Losing team Kildare | Winning team Galway (8th win) Manager John O'Mahony | |
Dates May - 27 September 1998 | ||
The 1998 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the 112th edition of the GAA's premier gaelic football competition. It was played from May to September 1998. Galway's victory marked the first time in 32 years the Sam Maguire Cup returned to the county and the province of Connacht. Their classy performance against Kildare who defeated the 1995 champions Dublin, the 1996 champions Meath in Leinster and the 1997 winners Kerry, ensured their eighth All-Ireland triumph.
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Format
The Ulster, Munster and Connacht championships were conducted as straight knock-out competitions. The Munster football championship for the 2nd year running had Kerry, Cork and Clare as byes to the semi-finals while Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford played a lone-first round game with the bye team in a lone quarter final. The Leinster championship consisted of a round robin format between Westmeath, Wexford, Longford and Carlow to determine the 8th team to play in the Leinster quarter finals. The winners of each provincial competition went on to play in the All Ireland semi-finals.
Westmeath qualify as 8th team for the Leinster Championship
Final
Kildare were marginal favourites to take the title after dethroning reigning champions Kerry in a tight and close game. As well as dethroning the reigning champions, Kildare had also defeated Meath and Dublin, the 1996 and 1995 champions respectively. Galway were never in danger of losing against Derry in the semi-final and won by 5 points in the end victory.
Like in their semi-final against Derry, Galway started well and had three unanswered points on the board by the 13th minute, one of which saw Michael Donnellan race towards the Kildare at great speed before taking his point. Kildare got their first score through Eddie McCormack In the 20th minute, Kildare took the lead, after Dermot Earley scored a goal.
In response, Michael Donnellan galvanised his team with a moment of GAA magic. From his own defence, he proceeded to charge up the field at lightning pace, exchanging a pass with Kevin Walsh in midfield. The ball found its way to Seán Óg De Paor who finished the move with a well-taken point. It was a score that quelled a potential run of scores for the Lilywhites. At the interval, the score was 1-05 to 0-05 in favour of Kildare.
After the restart, Ja Fallon sniped a point off the arrears before Pádraic Joyce struck with a wonderful goal where he rounded goalkeeper Christy Byrne before finishing in front of an empty net. Galway had regained the lead and would never surrender it until the final whistle. By 50th minute, it was 1-11 to 1-06 to Galway. Kildare managed to cut the lead to three before injury time but Galway had the final score, courtesy of De Paor to give them their first title in 32 years.