Down kingpins Kilcoo make it seven-in-a-row

October 19, 2025

Carryduff's Pearse McCabe tackles Darryl Branagan of Kilcoo during the Down SFC final at Pairc Esler ©INPHO/Leah Scholes

Kilcoo secured their 13th Down senior football championship title in 14 years by handing Carryduff a 1-17 to 1-11 defeat at Pairc Esler this evening.

The Newry venue had been subject to a pitch inspection in the early after that resulted in the game being pushed back to 5pm from its original 3.30pm throw-in time.

Kilcoo flew out of the traps from the throw-in by posting the first three points unanswered via Darryl Branagan, Anthony Morgan and Aaron Brangan.

Daniel Guinness hit back with a two-pointer for Carryduff and they had the gap closed until conceding a 20th minute penalty which Paul Devlin dispatched to their net.

From there, Martin Corey’s side moved towards a 1-6 to 0-5 interval lead and the scores of Jerome Johnston and Aaron Branagan would stretch their advantage to six as many minutes into the second-half.

Devlin’s brace of points made it an eight-point game with 20 minutes to go and, although John McGeogh would pull one back for Carryduff, the points of Aaron Brangan, Ryan Johnston and Jerome Johnston saw the Magpies with one hand back on the trophy heading into the final quarter.

Eoin Donnelly grabbed a sorely needed goal for the trailers with eight minutes left in normal time, but it’d serve as consolation as Sean Og McCusker and Ryan Johnston shot over last two points that sealed Kilcoo’s 23rd county SFC triumph.


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