Celtic Cup promises bright future for young hurlers

Talking Sport with Stephen Glennon

One of the most significant moves to address the imbalance in hurling standards across the inter-county divide had its regional launch at the Connacht Centre of Excellence in Bekan, Ballyhaunis on Tuesday evening, with Chair of the National Hurling Development Committee Paudie O’Neill believing the GAA has “really pushed the boat out” with its innovative new proposal.

This May and June the inaugural All-Ireland U-17 hurling championship will take place – to be known as the Celtic Cup – and Galway, for its part, will have two teams involved: North Galway and Galway City & West. They will compete in a group with North Clare, Mayo, and Roscommon.

In all, 38 teams across the 32 counties will participate in the Champions League-style format which boasts of seven groups structured, primarily, by region. For example, the other two Connacht counties, Leitrim and Sligo, will compete in a group with Cavan, Longford, Monaghan, and Louth.

Whoever tops the group in that one – no more than North Galway and Galway City & West’s group – will have the opportunity to play teams from Tier 1 counties like Kilkenny (South), Tipperary (South), Offaly, Dublin (1, 2 or 3), Waterford (City) and Limerick (City or West), among others.

O’Neill admitted, of course, that a team like Sligo or Leitrim, although they could go unbeaten through their group, could potentially take “a tanking” off a team from a Tier 1 county but he said the feedback the HDC received was that they were willing to run that risk.

“We had discussions – a lot of conference calls – with people from those counties and that was the feedback we got,” said the highly regarded Tipperary native. “It had been suggested if you were not a Liam McCarthy county, you would not go into Tier (Division) 1 but the feedback we got was ‘hold on, if we do well, then let’s play the big boys; if we take a bit of a tanking, fair enough’.”

The beauty of the Celtic Cup is that following the group stages, all teams will be graded on an intricate points basis, where teams will be awarded 10 points for a group win, five for a draw, a bonus point for a team scoring two goals or more in a match, and a bonus point for a team losing by five points or fewer in a match.

The model sounds very much like that used in rugby, and it is not the only similarity. The captain’s armband – or armbands (there are two) – will take on extra significance as regards discipline. Those wearing the armbands will be the only ones allowed to speak with the referee on the field in a game.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.