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The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Minor Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the
Electric Ireland Electric Ireland () is an Irish utility company that supplies electricity and gas to business and residential customers in Ireland. It is the supply division of the Electricity Supply Board, the former monopoly electricity company in Ireland. Th ...
GAA Hurling All-Ireland Minor Championship) is an annual
inter-county Inter-county, or inter county is Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) terminology which refers to competitions or matches between counties, as used in Gaelic games (differently from legal counties). The term can also be used to describe the players o ...
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 ...
competition 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 ...
(GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurling competition for male players under the age of 17 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 ...
and has been contested every year - except for a three-year absence during the Emergency - since
1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...
. The final, currently held on the third Sunday in August, is the culmination of a series of games played during July and August, with the winning team receiving the Irish Press Cup. The qualification procedures for the championship have changed several times throughout its history. Currently, qualification is limited to teams competing in the
Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...
and
Munster Championship The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...
s as well as
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 ...
. Having previously been played on a straight knockout basis, the championship has incorporated a
round robin Round-robin may refer to: Computing * Round-robin DNS, a technique for dealing with redundant Internet Protocol service hosts * Round-robin networks, communications networks made up of radio nodes organized in a mesh topology * Round-robin schedu ...
since
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
. Five teams currently participate in the All-Ireland Championship, with the most successful teams coming from the provinces of
Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...
and
Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...
.
Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...
,
Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
and
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 ...
are considered " the big three" of hurling. They have won 61 championships between them. The title has been won by 10 different teams, 9 of whom have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Tipperary and Kilkenny, who have both won the championship on 21 occasions.
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 ...
are the current champions.


History


Creation

Since
1887 Events January–March * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...
the All-Ireland Senior Championship had provided inter-county games for adult males. This was supplemented by the creation of the All-Ireland Junior Championship in
1912 Events January * January 1 – The Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China is established. * January 5 – The Prague Conference (6th All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) opens. * January 6 ...
which provided a springboard to develop players before progressing to senior level. The All-Ireland Minor Championship was the third championship to be created and was aimed at developing younger players who were under the age of 18.


Beginning

The inaugural All-Ireland Championship in
1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...
used a provincial format. 12 teams contested the respective championships in
Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...
and
Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...
, with
Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
and
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
emerging as the respective champions. There were no representatives in
Connacht Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbhn ...
or
Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
. Cork and Dublin contested the first All-Ireland Championship match - the delayed final - on Sunday 1 September 1929 at
Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...
,
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
. After a draw on the first day, Cork won the All-Ireland final replay on 27 October 1929 to take the title.


Development

The first two All-Ireland Championships featured the
Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...
and
Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...
champions facing off in the All-Ireland final. The Ulster Championship was introduced in the 1930 necessitating the need for an All-Ireland semi-final to be introduced. The
Connacht Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbhn ...
champions qualified for the first time in 1931, with the four provincial winners participating in two All-Ireland semi-finals. Over time the Leinster and Munster teams grew to become the superpowers of the game, as
Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...
was the more dominant sport in Ulster and Connacht. After some time
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 ...
became the only credible team in Connacht and was essentially given an automatic pass to the All-Ireland semi-final every year. This knock-out system persisted for nearly 60 years and was considered to be the fairest system as the All-Ireland champions would always be the only undefeated team of the year. In the mid-1990s 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 ...
looked at developing a new system whereby a defeat in the championship for certain teams would not mean an immediate exit from the Championship. In the 1997 championship the first major change in format arrived when the 'back-door system' was introduced. This new structure allowed the defeated Munster and Leinster finalists another chance to regain a place in the All-Ireland semi-finals. Clare and
Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...
were the first two teams to benefit from the new system when they qualified for the very first All-Ireland quarter-finals. Clare subsequently became the first team to win the All-Ireland Championship through the 'back-door' after a 1-11 to 1-09 defeat of Galway in the All-Ireland final.


Age reduction

On 26 January 2008, a radical motion was brought before a special Congress in an effort to combat player burnout. It was proposed to merge the existing under-21 and minor championships to create a new All-Ireland Under-19 Hurling Championship. This motion was defeated by 115 votes to 58. In an effort to combat player burnout, a new proposal to change the championship from an under-18 competition to an under-17 one was introduced by GAA Director-General
Páraic Duffy Páraic Duffy served as the 18th Director General of the Gaelic Athletic Association. A former chairman of the Monaghan County Board, he replaced Liam Mulvihill in February 2008 and was succeeded by Tom Ryan in April 2018. Paraic was the GAA's ...
at Congress on 26 February 2016. The motion was narrowly passed by a 68.2% majority.


Team dominance

Since the beginning the championship has been dominated by
Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
,
Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...
and
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 ...
. As of 2019, they have won a combined total of 59 of the 89 championship titles. These three teams began their hegemony by winning 12 of the first 14 championship titles between 1928 and 1941. Cork and Tipperary set the first championship record during this time by becoming the first two teams to win three successive All-Ireland Championships.
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
became the first team outside of the " big three" to win successive All-Ireland Championships in 1945 and 1946. Tipperary dominated the post-
Emergency An emergency is an urgent, unexpected, and usually dangerous situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property, or environment and requires immediate action. Most emergencies require urgent intervention to prevent a worsening ...
era by contesting 15 of the 18 All-Ireland finals between 1945 and 1962, including six-in-a-row between 1952 and 1957. They claimed a further eight All-Ireland Championships during this time. After Kilkenny became the third team to win three successive All-Ireland Championships between 1960 and 1962,
Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...
won their only three All-Ireland Championships between 1963 and 1968 as Cork reemerged to dominate the fifteen-year period between 1964 and 1979. During this time they claimed eight All-Ireland Championships from 12 final appearances. Kilkenny also reestablished themselves as the standard bearers of the Leinster Championship during this time and won five All-Ireland Championships from 12 final appearances between 1969 and 1984. The 1980s saw
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 ...
and
Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...
claim their first All-Ireland Championships, while
Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
secured the Centenary-year title after a lapse of nearly 30 years. Galway emerged as the most dominant team of the 21st century. Between 1999 and 2020 they claimed 11 All-Ireland Championships from 15 final appearances, including an historic 4-in-a-row from 2017 to 2020, being the first county to every achieve such a feat.


Current format


Championship

There are five teams in the All-Ireland Championship. During the course of a championship season (from July to August) six games are played comprising three group stage quarter-finals, two semi-finals and a final.


Qualification and progression


Trophy and medals

At the end of the All-Ireland final, the winning team is presented with a trophy. The ''Irish Press'' Cup is held by the winning team until the following year's final. Traditionally, the presentation is made at a special rostrum in the Ard Chomairle section of the Hogan Stand where GAA and political dignitaries and special guests view the match. The cup is decorated with ribbons in the colours of the winning team. During the game the cup actually has both teams' sets of ribbons attached and the runners-up ribbons are removed before the presentation. The winning captain accepts the cup on behalf of his team before giving a short speech. Individual members of the winning team then have an opportunity to come to the rostrum to lift the cup. On 30 August 1949, The Irish Press Ltd. announced that they had presented a silver cup to 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 ...
to mark the 21st anniversary of the All-Ireland Championship. The cup is modelled on an ancient
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
mether. The cup was first presented to John O'Grady 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 ...
in
1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...
. In accordance with GAA rules, the Central Council awards up to twenty-six gold medals to the winners of the All-Ireland final. The medals are 9 carat gold and depict the design of the GAA. Trophies are awarded to the All-Ireland runners-up.


Top winners


List of All-Ireland Finals


Recent finals


All-time record


Managers

Managers Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...
in the All-Ireland Championship are involved in the day-to-day running of the team, including the training, team selection, and sourcing of players from the club championships. Their influence varies from county-to-county and is related to the individual county boards. The manager is assisted by a team of two or three selectors and an extensive backroom team consisting of various coaches. Prior to the development of the concept of a manager in the 1970s, teams were usually managed by a team of selectors with one member acting as chairman.


Records and statistics


By decade

The most successful team of each decade, judged by number of All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship titles, is as follows: * 1920s: 1 each for Cork (1928) and Waterford (1929) * 1930s: 4 for Tipperary (1930-32-33-34) * 1940s: 2 for Tipperary (1947–49) * 1950s: 6 for Tipperary (1952-53-55-56-57-59) * 1960s: 3 each for Kilkenny (1960-61-62), Wexford (1963-66-68) and Cork (1964–67-69) * 1970s: 5 for Cork (1970-71-74-78-79) * 1980s: 3 for Offaly (1986-87-89) * 1990s: 3 for Kilkenny (1990-91-93) and Galway (1992-94-99) * 2000s: 4 for Galway (2000-04-05-09) * 2010s: 5 for Galway (2011-15-17-18-19)


Gaps

Longest gaps between successive All-Ireland titles: * 65 years: Waterford (1948-2013) * 26 years: Limerick (1958-1984) * 20 years: Cork (2001-2021) * 19 years: Waterford (1929-1948) * 18 years: Limerick (1940-1958) * 17 years: Tipperary (1959-1976) * 14 years: Kilkenny (1936-1950) * 14 years: Tipperary (1982-1996) * 13 years: Tipperary (1934-1947) * 13 years: Cork (1951-1964)


Top scorers


By year


In finals


References


External links


Official GAA Roll of Honour



Roll of Honour on www.gaainfo.com
{{Hurling All-Ireland inter-county hurling championships