The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship of 1997 (known for sponsorship reasons as the Guinness Hurling Championship 1997) was the 111th staging of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

's premier

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

competition.

Clare Clare may refer to: Places Antarctica * Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land Australia * Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley * Clare Valley, South Australia Canada * Clare (electoral district), an electoral district * Cl ...

won the championship, beating Tipperary 0-20 to 2-13 in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

Croke Park Croke Park (, ) 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 headquarters of the Gaelic At ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Pre-championship

The 'back-door' system

Since its inception in 1887 the championship had been played on a straight knock-out basis. If any team was defeated at any stage of the provincial or All-Ireland competitions it meant automatic elimination. This system was deemed the fairest as the All-Ireland champions would always be the team who won all of their games. There were some problems with this system. Over the years

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

had become the only credible hurling team in

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

, thus giving them an automatic pass into the All-Ireland semi-finals every year. Similarly in

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

there were many problems as hurling was much weaker and confined to a small few counties in the north-east of the province. In 1995 the Hurling Development Committee began investigating a way of improving hurling in general and revamping the championship. Their proposals involved allowing the defeated Munster and Leinster finalists to re-enter the All-Ireland championship. Although the two provincial final winners would automatically qualify for the All-Ireland semi-finals the two defeated provincial teams would join Galway and the Ulster champions in two play-off games or 'quarter-finals'. The two winners from these two games would then qualify for the semi-finals where they would be drawn against the Leinster and Munster champions. Repeat games would be avoided in the All-Ireland semi-final stage. At the start of 1996 these proposals looked unlikely of being introduced, however, a whistle-stop tour undertaken by the committee's secretary

Frank Murphy William Francis Murphy (April 13, 1890July 19, 1949) was an American politician, lawyer, and jurist from Michigan. He was a Democrat who was named to the Supreme Court of the United States in 1940 after a political career that included serving ...

and Pat Daly, the GAA's Games Development Officer, had changed the position. In April 1996 the committee's proposals were accepted at the GAA's annual congress. Most counties supported the new proposals and motion 15 (a) was passed with more than a two-thirds majority.

Betting

Prior to the opening of the championship former All-Ireland-winning manager

Éamonn Cregan Éamonn Cregan (born 21 May 1945) is an Irish former Gaelic footballer, hurler and manager. He is best remembered for his success with Limerick, as a player in the 1970s and then as manager of various club and inter-county teams in the 1980s an ...

gave his predictions for the upcoming championship in ''

the Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

''. As with the previous three championships the field was wide open. Although they were the reigning champions,

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

were given little chance of making it two-in-a-row. The departure of manager Liam Griffin and the sheer exertion of winning the previous years' title meant that Wexford's hurlers, it seemed, had reached their peak. Wexford's greatest rivals,

Kilkenny Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...

, were tipped for success. Having failed to land the provincial title since 1993, former player and current manager

Nickey Brennan Nicholas "Nickey" Brennan (born 3 December 1953) is an Irish former hurler, manager and Gaelic games administrator. He played as a right wing-back at senior level for the Kilkenny county team. More recently, he served as the 35th president o ...

seemed to have reignited the hunger.

Offaly County Offaly (; ) 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 honour of Philip II of Spain ...

, a team that had reached two out of the last three championship deciders, were regarded as being up there with Kilkenny. One problem was the age profile of some of the team's players, while a lack of strength in depth on the bench also militated against Offaly's chances. The return of

Cyril Farrell Cyril Farrell (born 1 August 1950) is an Irish former hurling manager, selector, trainer and coach. He was the manager of the senior Galway county team on three separate occasions, during which time he became the county's longest-serving mana ...

as manager of the

team seemed to give the team a boost. Farrell guided his native county to three All-Ireland titles in the 1980s and seemed to be blessed with a very strong panel at the start of his third stint as manager.

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

, the All-Ireland runners-up of the previous year, were again touted as a team that could make the big breakthrough. Two All-Ireland final defeats in three years, however, lead some commentators to question the mental toughness of the team.

, the surprise champions of two years earlier, seemed to be in decline and were seen as having reached their zenith in 1995. Tipperary, however, were viewed as the dark horses of the championship. Although the 'big three' were in decline for a number of years, a resurgent John Leahy seemed to give Tipp a half-chance of landing the championship title.

Team changes

To Championship

Promoted from the

All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship The GAA Hurling Intermediate All-Ireland Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Intermediate Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Effectively contested by the second ...

* None

From Championship

Regraded to the

* Carlow * London Withdrew from Championship * New York

The championship

Participating counties

Format

Connacht Championship

''Final:'' (1 match) This is a lone match between the two competing Connacht teams. One team is eliminated at this stage, while the winners advance to the All-Ireland quarter-final where the play the Leinster runners-up.

Leinster Championship

''Preliminary Round:'' (1 match) This is a single match between the first two teams drawn from the province of Leinster. One team is eliminated at this stage, while the winners advance to the quarter-finals. ''Quarter-finals:'' (2 matches) The winner of the preliminary round game joins three other Leinster teams to make up the two quarter-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage, while two teams advance to the Leinster semi-finals. ''Semi-finals:'' (2 matches) The winners of the two quarter-finals join two other Leinster teams to make up the semi-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage, while two teams advance to the Leinster final. ''Final:'' (1 match) The winners of the two semi-finals contest this game. The winners advance to the All-Ireland semi-final while the runners-up advance to the All-Ireland quarter-final.

Munster Championship

''Quarter-final:'' (2 matches) These are two lone matches between the first four teams drawn from the province of Munster. Two teams are eliminated at this stage, while two teams advance to the semi-finals. ''Semi-finals:'' (2 matches) The winners of the two quarter-finals join the other two Munster teams to make up the semi-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage, while two teams advance to the final. ''Final:'' (1 match) The winners of the two semi-finals contest this game. The winners advance to the All-Ireland semi-final while the runners-up advance to the All-Ireland quarter-final.

Ulster Championship

''Semi-final:'' (1 match) This is a single match between the first two teams drawn from the province of Ulster. One team is eliminated at this stage, while the winners advance to the final. ''Final:'' (1 match) The winner of the semi-final joins another Ulster team to contest this game. One team is eliminated at this stage, while the winners advance to the All-Ireland quarter-final where that play the Munster runners-up.

All-Ireland Championship

''Quarter-finals'': (2 matches) These are two lone matches between the Connacht champions and the Leinster runners-up, and the Ulster champions and the Munster runners-up. Two teams are eliminated at this stage, while the winners advance to the All-Ireland semi-finals. ''Semi-finals'': (2 matches) The Munster and Leinster champions play the winners of the two quarter-finals. Two teams are eliminated at this stage, while the two winners advance to the All-Ireland final. ''Final'': (1 match) The two semi-final winners contest the final.

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

(Leinster quarter-final) *Last goal of the championship:

Eugene O'Neill Eugene Gladstone O'Neill (October 16, 1888 – November 27, 1953) was an American playwright. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into the U.S. the drama techniques of Realism (theatre), realism, earlier associated with ...

for Tipperary against

(All-Ireland final) *Hat-trick heroes: **First

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

of the championship: Ger Ennis for

against

(Leinster quarter-final) **Second

of the championship:

Alan Kerins Alan Kerins (born 1977) is an Irish sportsman, humanitarian, social entrepreneur and philanthropist. Kerins was a dual player for Galway, a hurler between 1997 and 2011 and a footballer between 2001 and 2004. He played with the senior inter-co ...

for

against

Roscommon Roscommon (; ; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60 road (Ireland), N60, N61 road (Ireland), N61 and N63 road (Irelan ...

(Connacht final) *Widest winning margin: 37 points **

6-24 : 0-5

(Connacht final) *Most goals in a match: 7 **

5-15 : 2-8

(Leinster quarter-final) **

4-15 : 3-16

(All-Ireland quarter-final) *Most points in a match: 37 **

2-20 : 1-17

Waterford Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...

(Munster quarter-final) **

1-19 : 0-18

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

(Munster semi-final) *Most goals by one team in a match: 6 **

6-24 : 0-5

(Connacht final) *Most goals scored by a losing team: 3 **

3-16 : 4-15

(All-Ireland quarter-final) ** Down 3-8 : 3-24 Tipperary (All-Ireland quarter-final) *Most points scored by a losing team: 18 **

0-18 : 1-19

(Munster semi-final) ** Tipperary 0-18 : 1-18

(Munster final)

Discipline

*First yellow card of the championship: Alfie Devine for

against

(Leinster quarter-final) *Last yellow card of the championship: Brian O'Meara for Tipperary against

(All-Ireland final)

Top scorers

Season

Single game

Miscellaneous

* The meeting of

and Tipperary in the All-Ireland final was the first time that two teams from the same province met in the championship decider.

References

* Corry, Eoghan, ''The GAA Book of Lists'' (Hodder Headline Ireland, 2005). * Donegan, Des, ''The Complete Handbook of Gaelic Games'' (DBA Publications Limited, 2005). * Sweeney, Éamonn, ''Munster Hurling Legends'' (The O'Brien Press, 2002).

External links

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1997 Results
{{Hurling All-Irelands

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

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

Pre-championship

The 'back-door' system

Betting

Team changes

To Championship

From Championship

The championship

Participating counties

Format

Connacht Championship

Leinster Championship

Munster Championship

Ulster Championship

All-Ireland Championship

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

Bracket

Semi-finals

Ulster Final

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

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 hur ...

Bracket

Preliminary round

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

Bracket

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

Bracket

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

All-Ireland final

Championship statistics

Scoring

Discipline

Top scorers

Season

Single game

Miscellaneous

See also

References

External links