PRIOR TO 2001, your championship could have been over in May.
Months and months of morning training sessions and mud-bath pitches often amounted to 70 minutes of action, and if you were unlucky enough to be in a competitive province or facing one of the heavyweights, your dreams of kicking ball in August were over before they even began.
Over the past 14 years of football’s back door, six teams have used the qualifiers as a springboard to All-Ireland success, with even more taking a second chance to give themselves an extended and sometimes unexpected championship adventure.
This weekend sees throw-in for the 15th instalment of All-Ireland qualifier action, so with that in mind we’ve looked back at 15 teams who have used their second chance wisely.
2001 – Galway
Galway’s run to All-Ireland glory in 2001 was a ringing endorsement for the qualifiers in their very first year.
John O’Mahony’s side had been All-Ireland finalists the year before, but were shocked by Roscommon in the Connacht semi-final.
A result like that 12 months before would have ended their summer, but they picked themselves up to beat Wicklow in Aughrim, before showing their steel to get past Armagh and Cork, setting up an All-Ireland quarter final rematch with the Rossies.
They made amends for the Connacht defeat with a six-point win before Derry were the next to fall in the semis.
In the final, it was Sean Boylan and Meath standing between them and Sam, and 10 points from Pádraic Joyce helped them on their way to another All-Ireland title.
2002 – Sligo
Had it not been for Armagh’s first ever All-Ireland title in 2002, Sligo’s summer campaign could have been remembered far differently.
The Yeats county took the eventual champions to a replay in the All-Ireland quarter final that year, coming from five points down to secure a dramatic draw.
Joe Kernan’s side ultimately had too much for Sligo in their second game, but reaching a quarter-final had been an achievement in itself, after a big result against Tyrone in round four of the qualifiers.
2003 – Donegal
When Donegal were defeated by Fermanagh in the Ulster preliminary round, thoughts of an All-Ireland semi-final in Croke Park seemed a million miles away.
However, a march through the qualifiers saw off Longford, Sligo, Tipperary and Down, before a quarter-final meeting with Galway looked set to end their extended summer.
It seemed like they had blown their chance when Kevin Walsh equalised late on to secure a replay for the Tribesmen, but they came back stronger a week later to dump the Connacht champions out.
The summer was ended by Ulster rivals Armagh in the last four, but after such a miserable start to the summer, 2003 turned out to be memorable in the north west.
2003 – Armagh
The reigning All-Ireland champions looked out of sorts when they were fended off by Monaghan on the opening day of the 2003 championship, but they regrouped during the qualifiers with wins over Waterford and Antrim, before passing a crucial test against Dublin in Round 3.
They hammered beaten Munster finalists Limerick two weeks later, before Leinster champions Laois bit the dust in the quarters.
The semi final saw the aforementioned defeat of Donegal, but they fell just short of the elusive two-in-a-row against an inspired Tyrone side.
Despite the final defeat, the back-door system gave Kernan’s side the chance to prove that 2002 was far from a fluke.
2004 – Fermanagh
Fermanagh’s victory over Armagh in the 2004 All-Ireland quarter final was arguably the crowning moment of the back-door system.
Few batted an eyelid when they were knocked out of the Ulster championship by Tyrone, but a walkover against Tipperary followed by wins against Meath and Cork proved that they weren’t going to depart the summer without a fight.
After they squeezed past Donegal in Round 4, they found themselves at Croke Park in a quarter-final against heavyweights Armagh.
The one-point victory that afternoon is one of the most famous games from that decade, and they even took Mayo to a replay in the last four, before falling short to the Connacht champions by two points.
A memorable summer.
2005 – Tyrone
After Galway in 2001, Tyrone became the second team to lift Sam the hard way, becoming All-Ireland champions after a staggering 10-game championship.
They beat Down and needed a replay to see off Cavan, before another replay in the Ulster final saw them lose to Armagh in Croke Park.
Another all-Ulster qualifier tie saw them get the better of Monaghan, and two classic games against Dublin set up a third meeting of the summer in the last four against Armagh.
Peter Canavan’s coolly slotted injury-time free gave them revenge over their rivals before they continued their hoodoo over Kerry to lift a second All-Ireland title.
2006 – Kerry
Kieran Donaghy’s revolutionary summer of 2006 would not have happened had it not been for the qualifiers.
Kerry looked lethargic in their Munster finals against Cork this year, going down to the Rebels after a replay.
Donaghy went in at the edge of the square in their qualifier with Longford, and the rest is history. They steam-rolled Armagh in the quarter final, before gaining revenge on Cork in the last four, eventually hammering Mayo in the final to lift Sam Maguire once more.
2006 – Laois
While the qualifiers give the big counties a second crack at glory, they also provide smaller sides the opportunity to take a big championship scalp.
Beaten by 14 points by the Dubs in the Leinster semi-final, Laois bounced back in style to knock out the defending All-Ireland champions Tyrone in the qualifiers.
Meath and Offaly then fell by the wayside before the season eventually ended in the quarter finals after Mayo did enough to see them off.
2008 – Tyrone
For the third time in six seasons Tyrone claimed All-Ireland glory — and for the second time they did it the hard way.
Shocked by Down in their Ulster quarter final replay after extra time, Mickey Harte’s men found themselves in the qualifiers.
Louth and Westmeath were seen off with ease before they edged past Mayo by a point in Croke Park.
They hammered Dublin the the All-Ireland quarters, and surprise package Wexford were seen off in the last eight, before the Red Hand once again toppled Kerry in the decider.
2008 – Wexford
Not many people in Wexford expected the summer of 2008 to last as long as it did.
A Leinster final hammering against against Dublin had the potential to knock them for six, but they regrouped to beat Down in the qualifiers, setting up a quarter-final appearance against Armagh.
The had five points to spare that day before the season ended against eventual champions Tyrone in the last four.
2009 – Kerry
Kerry went through the motions before exploding to life in 2009.
Beaten by Cork in Munster after a replay, they got past Longford before surviving a massive scare against Sligo in Tralee.
They lacked inspiration in the win against Antrim but came to life in emphatic fashion in the All-Ireland quarter finals, Colm Cooper scoring a goal inside a minute and blitzing the Dubs off the park.
Meath were seen off in the last four, as were Cork in the final, and a summer of ups and downs ended on a high for Kerry.
2010 – Cork
For the third year in a row, the All-Ireland champions came via the qualifiers.
Defeat to Kerry in Munster set Cork up with a qualifier against Cavan before they picked up further wins against Wexford and Limerick to book their place in the last eight.
They strolled to victory against Roscommon in the quarters, and shaded the Dubs by a point in the last four, before lifting a first title in 20 years with victory against Down.
2010 – Down
You would have been hard pressed to find a Down supporter who fancied their chances of reaching the All-Ireland final in 2010, and after their Ulster championship defeat to Tyrone, that task would have been even greater.
Longford, Offaly and Sligo were seen off in the qualifiers, before Kerry were spectacularly accounted for in the last eight.
The semi-final victory against Kildare proved it was far from a fluke, but it wasn’t to be in the final as Cork edged them out by a point.
2012 – Laois
The Round 1 defeat to Longford in Leinster was tough to take, but Justin McNulty’s men fronted up to defeat Carlow, Monaghan Leitrim and Meath successive rounds.
Their journey to the All-Ireland quarter finals won’t go down as one of the most memorable championship summers, but after looking so out of sorts in Pearse Park earlier in the campaign, the final destination in the championship, and the performance against Dublin in their last eight defeat earned themselves a bit of pride.
2013 – Tyrone
Defeat to reigning All-Ireland champions Donegal in the first round of Ulster was far from shameful, and in years gone by their summer would have been over because of the luck of the draw.
But Tyrone kept their composure to beat Offaly and Roscommon in the early qualifier rounds, before surviving close games against Kildare and Meath to get back into the quarter finals.
Victory against Monaghan may not have impressed Joe Brolly, but after a rocky few years, Tyrone were back in an All-Ireland semi-final.
Ultimately, Mayo proved too strong in the last four, but Mickey Harte’s side showed plenty of resolve to bounce back after the opening day defeat to Donegal.
