The Galway Intermediate Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Galmont Hotel Intermediate Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Galway IHC) is an annual

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 Galway County Board of 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 ...

and contested by the top-ranking intermediate clubs in the county of Galway 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 ...

. It is the second tier overall in the entire Galway hurling championship system. The Galway Intermediate Championship was introduced in 1949 as a competition that would bridge the gap between the senior grade and the

junior grade A junior grade is a subdivision of a military rank, lower than the corresponding rank without that qualification. In the U.S. armed forces, the Army formerly appointed warrant officers (junior grade), and the Navy's lieutenants, junior grade ar ...

. In its current format, the Galway Intermediate Championship begins in April. The 14 participating teams are drawn into two groups of seven teams and play each other in a round-robin system. The four top-ranking teams in both groups proceed to the knockout phase that culminates with the final match at Kenny Park in October. The winner of the Galway Intermediate Championship, as well as being presented with the Mick Sylver Cup, qualifies for the subsequent Connacht Club Championship. The competition has been won by 37 teams, 19 of which have won it more than once. Mullagh, Pádraig Pearses and

Killimordaly Killimordaly () is a rural village and civil parish in County Galway, Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east ...

are the most successful teams in the tournament's history, having won it 4 times each.

Killimor Killimor () is a village in east County Galway, Ireland. It is situated on the N65 national secondary road A national secondary road ( ga, Bóthar Náisiúnta den Dara Grád) is a category of road in Ireland. These roads form an important ...

are the reigning champions, having beaten

Meelick-Eyrecourt Meelick-Eyrecourt is a Gaelic Athletic Association club in the east of County Galway, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, History Meelick-Eyrecourt GAA club was founded in Meelick, County Galway, Meelick in the 1880s, and contested the first all-Ir ...

by 0-13 to 0-09 in the 2022 final in Duggan Park Ballinasloe on October 15, 2022.

Qualification for subsequent competitions

Connacht Intermediate Club Hurling Championship

The Galway IHC winners qualify for the Connacht Intermediate Club Hurling Championship. It is the only team from County Galway to qualify for this competition. The Galway IHC winners enter the Connacht Intermediate Club Hurling Championship at the __ stage. For example, 2018 winner Oranmore-Maree won the Connacht IHC, as did 2016 winner Ahascragh-Fohenagh, and 2015 winner Abbeyknockmoy 2014 winner

Cappataggle Cappataggle () is a village located between the towns of Loughrea and Ballinasloe in east County Galway. With the areas Kilrickle and Killalaghton it forms a parish of the same name. The name Cappataggle is an anglicisation of the Irish name ''C ...

also won, becoming the ninth Galway IHC club to do so.

All-Ireland Intermediate Club Hurling Championship

The Galway IHC winners — by winning the Connacht Intermediate Club Hurling Championship — may qualify for the All-Ireland Intermediate Club Hurling Championship, at which they would enter at the __ stage. For example, 2018 Galway IHC winner Oranmore-Maree (featuring Galway

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 ...

winners

Gearóid McInerney Gearóid McInerney (born 24 September 1990) is an Irish hurler who currently plays as a centre-back for the Galway senior team. Born in Oranmore, County Galway, McInerney was born into a strong hurling family. His father, Gerry McInerney, wa ...

( All Star) and

Niall Burke Niall Burke (born 21 May 1991) is an Irish hurler who, as of 2012, played as a centre-forward at senior level for the Galway county team. Burke made his first appearance for the team during the 2012 National League and immediately became a ...

) won the All-Ireland Championship title 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 ...

Roll of honour

List of finals

References

External links

Official Galway WebsiteGalway on Hoganstand
{{Galway GAA, state=expanded 1 Intermediate hurling county championships