The 1978 Cork Senior Football Championship was the 90th staging of the

Cork Senior Football Championship The Cork Premier Senior Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the McCarthy Insurance Group Cork Premier Senior Football Championship and abbreviated to the Cork PSFC) is an annual club Gaelic football competition organised by t ...

since its establishment by the Cork County Board in

1887 Events January * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the United States Navy to lease Pearl Har ...

. The championship began on 9 April 1978 and ended on 17 September 1978. It was the first championship to use a group stage format followed by a knockout phase.

Nemo Rangers Nemo Rangers Hurling and Football Club is a Gaelic Athletic Association club in Ballinlough, Cork, Ireland. The club is affiliated to the Seandún Board and fields teams in Gaelic football, hurling and camogie. History Nemo Rangers Hurling & ...

entered the championship as the defending champions. On 17 September 1978, Nemo Rangers won the championship following a 1-09 to 1-03 defeat of St Michael's in the final. This was their fifth championship title overall and their second title in succession. It was the first time that two teams had qualified for the final having earlier lost a match. St. Michael's became the first team since

Fermoy Fermoy () is a town on the Munster Blackwater, River Blackwater in east County Cork, Ireland. As of the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, the town and environs had a population of approximately 6,700 people. It is located in the barony (Ir ...

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free France, Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command First Army (France), French Army B, part of the Sixt ...

to lose three finals in-a-row.

Dinny Allen Denis 'Dinny' Allen (born 9 August 1952) is a retired Gaelic football manager and former dual player. He played both hurling and Gaelic football with his local club Nemo Rangers and was a member of the Cork senior inter-county teams in both cod ...

was the championship's top scorer with 2-36.

Format change

Since its inception in

the championship had been played on a straight knock-out basis. If any team was defeated at any stage it meant automatic elimination. This system was deemed the fairest as the county champions would always be the team who won all of their games. There were some problems with this system and a special committee was established to examine the standard of competing teams. At the County Convention on 5 February 1978, delegates voted by 138 to 83 in favour of changing the format of the championship. The new format incorporated a group stage involving four different divisions followed by a knockout stage.

Team changes

To Championship

Promoted from the

Cork Intermediate Football Championship The Cork Intermediate A Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as McCarthy Insurance Group Cork County Intermediate A Football Championship and abbreviated to the Cork IAFC) is an annual Gaelic football competition organised by the ...

* Naomh Abán

From Championship

Declined to field a team *

Imokilly Imokilly () is one of the baronies of Ireland, an historical geographical unit of land. Its chief town is Youghal. It is one of 24 baronies in the county of Cork. Other neighbouring baronies include Barrymore to the west (whose chief town is ...

Results

Division 1

Table

Results

Division 2

Table

Results

Playoff

Division 3

Table

Results

Division 4

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

Championship statistics

Top scorers

;Overall

Miscellaneous

* Nemo Rangers officials refused to allow team captain

Brian Murphy Brian Murphy may refer to: Sportspeople * Brian Murphy (Jamaican cricketer) (born 1973), Jamaican cricketer * Brian Murphy (Zimbabwean cricketer) (born 1976), Zimbabwean cricketer * Brian Murphy (baseball) (born 1980), American head baseball coac ...

to receive the cup in protest against the

County Board A county board is a common form of county legislature, particular of counties in the United States. Related forms of county government include: * Board of Supervisors — a form of county legislature in some U.S. states * County commission, ...

's earlier decision to expel the Nemo Rangers senior hurling team from the 1978 Cork SHC and fine the club £75. * St. Michael's become the first team since

between 1942-44 to lose three finals in a row.

References

{{Cork Senior Football Championship Cork Senior Football Championship