The 2010 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship was the 65th installment of the annual

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

held under the auspices of the

Ulster GAA The Ulster Council ( ga, Comhairle Uladh) is a provincial council of the Gaelic Athletic Association sports of hurling, Gaelic football, camogie, and handball in the province of Ulster. The headquarters of the Ulster GAA is based in the city o ...

. Antrim were the defending champions and successfully claimed their ninth consecutive title, beating finalists Down.

Format

The draw for the Ulster championship was seeded, and took place in a staggered single elimination format. Antrim received a bye to the final, Down and

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

to the quarteri-final and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to the second round. All six other teams entered in the first round. There was no entry from the Ulster Championship to the

2010 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship The 2010 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 114th staging of Ireland's premier hurling competition since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. A total of thirteen teams competed in the championship, with Tipp ...

proper. Antrim instead entered that competition through the preliminary round of the

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

. The other Ulster teams were not eligible, and took part in lower tier competitions, such as the 2010 Christy Ring Cup, the second tier All-Ireland hurling championship. The number of teams in the championship for 2010, as in 2008 and 2009, was ten. In order to avoid mismatches, the draw was set in set so that the weaker counties were not faced with the prospect of facing regional powers Antrim at an early stage; instead all the other counties took part in a series of elimination matches for the right to meet Antrim in the final.

Controversy

In the semifinal, London were expected to play Down for the right to face Antrim in the final. However, a class of fixtures occurred with London participating in the

Nicky Rackard Cup The Nicky Rackard Cup (; often referred to as the Rackard Cup) is the fourth tier of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. Each year, the champion team in the Nicky Rackard Cup is promoted to the Christy Ring Cup, and the lowest finishin ...

, the third tier

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 ...

competition. As

refused to re-organise the fixture, London forfeited the tie by walkover to Down; shortly thereafter,

London GAA The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) ( ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael, Coiste Londain) or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London. The county board is also r ...

signalled their intention to leave the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship from 2011.

Teams

Bracket

References

External links

Ulster GAA website
Ulster Hurling Senior

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 ...

Ulster Senior Hurling Championship {{Hurling-competition-stub