From Croke Park to county exits - five times all four finalists have faltered

It's just 10 short months since Glen, St Brigid’s, St Thomas’ and O’Loughlin Gaels rolled into Croke Park and delivered two classic All-Ireland club finals capped off by a couple of one-point wins.

Some of the quality was exquisite, the excitement palpable, even if mistakes were plentiful, but now, as October prepares to make way for November, not a single one of that quartet has managed to retain their county championship let alone look forward to a provincial defence and possible All-Ireland glory.

A series of shockwave results, none more so than the final of those on Sunday as football champions Glen were knocked out in Derry by massive underdogs Newbridge, saw them fall one by one over in what seemed to be the pretty unique event of the four club finalists all failing to make it to the provincial stage.

However, the since the football and hurling tournaments became part of the official GAA calendar for the 1970/71 season, it is actually the fifth occasion it has occurred.

The first of those came in 1991 and again involved All-Ireland football champions from Derry.

Earlier that year, Ulster champions Lavey lifted the Andy Merrigan Cup with victory over Galway’s Salthill-Knocknacarra while in the hurling final, Glenmore took the hurling title back to Kilkenny with a four-point win over Limerick’s Patrickswell.

A few months later, all four had been granted an unexpected – and unwanted – extended winter break.

Well not for all the Lavey squad with their dual players heading into the Ulster series after a third straight Oakleaf hurling title, but their footballers were knocked out in the first round by eventual champions Dungiven in a tense affair in Glen.

Salthill-Knocknacarra fared better, reaching the final and only losing