The 1887 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final was a

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

match that was played at Birr Sportsfield, Birr on 1 April 1888 to determine the winners of the 1887 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the first season of the

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurling competition i ...

, a tournament organised by the

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional ...

for inter-county hurling teams in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The final was contested by club representatives Thurles Blues of

Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

and Meelick of

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

, with Tipperary winning by 1–1 (and a forfeit point) to 0–00. The All-Ireland final between Tipperary and Galway was a unique occasion as it was the first ever championship meeting between the two teams. Patrick White, a native of Blakefield, Toomevara and the first secretary of Offaly County G.A.A. Board. was the referee. Tipperary's clash with Galway proved to be their toughest championship test yet. At a crucial stage in the second-half team captain

Jim Stapleton James Stapleton (1863 – 18 March 1949) was an Irish hurler who played as a forward for the Tipperary senior team. Stapleton made his first appearance for the team during the inaugural championship and was a regular member of the team for ...

led a charge down the field. Spotting a free player he passed the sliotar to Tom Healy who went on to score the first goal in an All-Ireland final. Tipperary's All-Ireland victory was their first in what would be a remarkable record of securing an All-Ireland title in every decade. Tipperary also held a record of never losing an All Ireland Final from 1887 to 1909.

Match

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References

{{All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Finals April 1888 sports events Galway county hurling team matches Tipperary county hurling team matches