# 1961 All-Ireland Junior Football Championship

The 1961 All-Ireland Junior Football Championship was the 40th staging of the championship since its establishment by the GAA in 1912.
The competition format saw the four provincial champions compete in two 'Home' semi-finals, the winners of which then contested the All-Ireland 'Home' final at Croke Park.
Louth, having accounted for Meath, Longford and Offaly in the Leinster preliminary rounds and Dublin in the provincial final, went on to defeat Kerry and Galway in the All-Ireland Series to emerge as 'Home' champions.
In the last stage of the competition, the victorious 'Home' finalists then met the champions of Britain to determine who would be crowned overall All-Ireland Junior Football Champions for 1961.
The title match was played on 8 October in Leeds. The 1961 British champions Yorkshire provided the opposition for Louth. A tight game ended in victory for the Wee County side by three points.

## Results
### Leinster Junior Football Championship

| GK | 1 | Jim Clifford (St Patrick's) |
| RCB | 2 | Oliver Coombes (Wolfe Tones) |
| FB | 3 | Jim Butterly (Mattock Rangers) |
| LCB | 4 | Anthony Kirwan (Dreadnots) |
| RHB | 5 | Gussie Sheelan (St Patrick's) (c) |
| CHB | 6 | Michael Kelly (Wolfe Tones) |
| LHB | 7 | Noel McDonnell (Drogheda Parnells) |
| MF | 8 | Ted Russell (Naomh Mhuire) |
| MF | 9 | Paddy Jordan (St Patrick's) |
| RHF | 10 | Seán Goodman (Walshestown Rovers) |
| CHF | 11 | Jim Sheelan (St Patrick's) |
| LHF | 12 | Jim Judge (Newtown Blues) |
| RCF | 13 | Ronnie McDonnell (Seán McDermott's) |
| FF | 14 | Henry Donnelly (St Patrick's) |
| LCF | 15 | Fra Kirk (Clan na Gael) |
| Substitutes: ||
| | 16 | Jim Kearns (O'Connells) for Judge |
| | 17 | Paddy Reilly (Naomh Mhuire) for Ronnie McDonnell |
| GK | 1 | Martin Leonard (St Maur's) |
| RCB | 2 | Paddy Archibold (St Joseph's) |
| FB | 3 | Leo Hickey (Ballyboughal) |
| LCB | 4 | Brian Cooney (Rialto Gaels) |
| RHB | 5 | Pat Fox (Rialto Gaels) |
| CHB | 6 | Liam O'Hagan (Synge Street) (c) |
| LHB | 7 | Denis Dempsey (Rialto Gaels) |
| MF | 8 | Colm Fox (Ballyboughal) |
| MF | 9 | Frank McKearney (St Joseph's) |
| RHF | 10 | Paddy Barrett (Ballyboughal) |
| CHF | 11 | Bert Ennis (Garristown) |
| LHF | 12 | Noel Kinsella (Fingal Ravens) |
| RCF | 13 | Nicky Dempsey (Rialto Gaels) |
| FF | 14 | Anthony Burke (Na Fianna) |
| LCF | 15 | Pat Somers (St Anne's) |
| Substitutes: ||
| | 16 | Paddy Nally (Seán McDermotts) for Burke |
| | 17 | Eamonn Burgess (Good Counsel) for Kinsella |
| | 18 | Finbarr Sheehan (St Patrick's, Donabate) for C. Fox |

### All-Ireland Junior Football Championship
#### 'Home' Semi-Finals
#### All-Ireland Final

| GK | 1 | Jim Clifford (St Patrick's) |
| RCB | 2 | Oliver Coombes (Wolfe Tones) |
| FB | 3 | Jim Butterly (Mattock Rangers) |
| LCB | 4 | Anthony Kirwan (Dreadnots) |
| RHB | 5 | Gussie Sheelan (St Patrick's) |
| CHB | 6 | Michael Kelly (Wolfe Tones) |
| LHB | 7 | Paddy Dixon (Clan na Gael) |
| MF | 8 | Frank Fagan (Newtown Blues) |
| MF | 9 | Paddy Jordan (St Patrick's) |
| RHF | 10 | Jim Sheelan (St Patrick's) |
| CHF | 11 | Muckle McKeown (O'Raghallaighs) |
| LHF | 12 | Jim Judge (Newtown Blues) |
| RCF | 13 | Seán Goodman (Walshestown Rovers) |
| FF | 14 | Henry Donnelly (St Patrick's) |
| LCF | 15 | Fra Kirk (Clan na Gael) |
| Substitutes: ||
| | 16 | Joe Mallon (Newtown Blues) for Jordan |
| | 17 | Leslie Toal (Clan na Gael) for Coombes |
| Manager: ||
| Paddy McArdle ||
| GK | 1 | Michael Courtney (Kerry) |
| RCB | 2 | Jim Grennan (Offaly) |
| FB | 3 | Leo Daly (Louth) |
| LCB | 4 | Tom Fox (Meath) |
| RHB | 5 | Pat Donnellan (Galway) |
| CHB | 6 | Pat Beirne (Roscommon) |
| LHB | 7 | Patrick O'Hara (Meath) |
| MF | 8 | Michael Jordan (Mayo) |
| MF | 9 | Jimmy Kelly (Laois) |
| RHF | 10 | Pat Marron (Monaghan) |
| CHF | 11 | Hugh Keegan (Westmeath) |
| LHF | 12 | Gene Kelly (Limerick) |
| RCF | 13 | Pat Burke (Tipperary) |
| FF | 14 | Michael Neary (Dublin) |
| LCF | 15 | Joe Sheils (Louth) |