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The following is a summary of Down county football team's 2021 season, which was its 118th year. The season was suspended until May 2021 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gaelic games.

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Competitions

Dr McKenna Cup

There was no McKenna Cup in 2021 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gaelic games.

National Football League Division 2 North

Down were promoted to Division 2 following their 2020 campaign, however in December 2020, it was announced that each division would be divided into North and South sections in order to reduce fixtures and minimise cross-border matches. Teams will play three league games, plus possibly two knockout matches, allowing the tournament to be finished in just five rounds of games. In February 2021, it was announced that the league would be delayed due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gaelic games, but that cancelling it would be a last resort.

The National League began on 15 May 2021. Following two defeats Down entered into the relegation play-offs, beating Laois 2-19 - 2-12 to retain their Division 2 status for the 2022 campaign.

Table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Qualification
1	Mayo (P)	3	3	0	0	74	50	+24	6	Advance to Division 2 semi-finals; both finalists are promoted to Division 1
2	Meath	3	2	0	1	55	55	0	4
3	Down	3	1	0	2	41	60	−19	2	Advance to a relegation playoff; losers are relegated to Division 3
4	Westmeath (R)	3	0	0	3	45	50	−5	0

Fixtures

Mayo	2-21 - 1-11	Down
Cillian O'Connor (0-8), Tommy Conroy (1-3), Ryan O'Donoghue (1-1), Matthew Ruane (0-2), Jordan Flynn (0-1), Fionn McDonagh (0-1), Michael Plunkett (0-1), Diarmuid O'Connor (0-1), Bryan Walsh (0-1), Eoghan McLaughlin (0-1)	Report	Barry O'Hagan 0-5 (0-4), Stephen McConville 1-0, Corey Quinn 0-2 (0-1), James Guinness (0-1), Daniel Guinness (0-1), Paul Devlin (0-1), Liam Kerr (0-1)

Meath	2-15 - 0-14	Down
Cillian O'Sullivan (2-1), Jordan Morris (0-7), Thomas O'Reilly (0-1), Andrew Colgan (0-1) Cathal Hickey (0-1), Ethan Devine (0-1), Bryan McMahon (0-1), Matthew Costello (0-1), Eamon Wallace (0-1)	Report	Paul Devlin (0-5), Cory Quinn (0-4), Ryan McEvoy (0-2), Conor McCrickard (0-2), Barry O’Hagan (0-1)

Westmeath	1-09 - 0-13	Down
John Heslin 0-6, Fola Ayorinde 1-0, Ronan O'Toole 0-1, Brandon Kelly 0-1, Ger Egan 0-1	Report	Corey Quinn 0-7, Paul Devlin 0-2, Pierce Laverty (0-1), Ryan McEvoy (0-1), Liam Kerry (0-1), Caolan Molloy (0-1)

Down	2-19 - 2-12	Laois
Barry O'Hagan (1-9), Caolan Mooney (1-2), Cory Quinn (0-2), Liam Kerr (0-1), Darren O'Hagan (0-1), Pierce Laverty (0-1), Gerard Collins (0-1), Stephen McConville (0-1), Conor McCrickard (0-1)	Report	Donie Kingston (1-3), Evan O'Carroll (1-0), Niall Corbet (0-3), Kieran Lillis (0-2), Colm Begley (0-1), Eoin Lowry (0-1), Colm Murphy (0-1), Gary Walsh (0-1)

Ulster Senior Football Championship

The draw for the 2021 Ulster Championship was made on 22 April 2021.

Fixtures

Down	1-12 - 2-25	Donegal
Caolan Mooney (1-0), Barry O'Hagan (0-8), Liam Kerr (0-2), James Guinness (0-1), Darren O'Hagan (0-1)	Report	Patrick McBrearty (1-6), Jamie Brennan (1-1), Ryan McHugh (0-4), Michael Langan (0-4), Peadar Mogan (0-3), Michael Murphy (0-2), Ciaran Thompson (0-1), Niall O'Donnell (0-1), Eoin McHugh (0-1), Conor O'Donnell (0-1), Ethan O'Donnell (0-1)

Bracket

	Preliminary round					Quarter-finals					Semi-finals					Final
						Armagh		4-15
						Antrim		0-14
											Armagh		2-21
											Monaghan		4-17
						Monaghan		1-21
						Fermanagh		0-14
																Monaghan		0-15
																Tyrone		0-16
						Tyrone		1-18
						Cavan		0-13
											Tyrone		0-23
											Donegal		1-14
						Derry		0-15
	Down		1-12			Donegal		0-16
	Donegal		2-25

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

Down could only enter the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship if they won the Ulster Championship. Following a defeat to Donegal, Down did not enter the 2021 All-Ireland Championship.

References

1. "GAA fixture calendar for 2021 revealed". Impartial Reporter. 24 December 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
2. "Inter-county leagues and championships revamped for 2021 season". BBC Sport. 21 December 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
3. Fogarty, John (19 December 2020). "New League structure as GAA master calendar for 2021 revealed". Irish Examiner.
4. "Longford pitted with provincial champions in 2021 National Football League". www.longfordleader.ie.
5. "2021 League and Championships – Overview". www.gaa.ie.
6. "No Activity For Clare GAA Sides Until Easter At The Earliest". 11 February 2021.
7. Fogarty, John (27 January 2021). "What will the delayed GAA season look like? Here are four possible scenarios". Irish Examiner.
8. Fogarty, John (26 January 2021). "GAA officials redrawing League and Championship calendars". Irish Examiner.
9. "Division Two: Down defeat Laois in relegation play-off". BBC Sport. 12 June 2020. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
10. "2021 GAA Football and Hurling Championship Draws: Munster, Connacht, Leinster and Ulster pairings decided". Sky Sports. 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
11. "Ulster SFC: Reigning champions Cavan draw Tyrone in quarter-finals". BBC. 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.

• 2021 in Gaelic football
• 2021 in Northern Ireland sport
• Down county football team seasons