The Limerick Intermediate Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Griffin Coaches County Intermediate Football Championship and abbreviated to the Limerick IFC) is an annual

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

competition organised by the Limerick County Board of the

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sports, amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional Irish sports o ...

and contested by intermediate clubs in the county of Limerick in

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 ...

. It is the second tier overall in the entire Limerick football championship system. In its present format, the 12 participating teams are divided into two groups of six teams and play each other once in a round-robin system. The top three teams in each group proceed to the knockout phase that culminates with the final. The winner of the Limerick Intermediate Championship qualifies for the subsequent Munster Club Championship.

Rathkeale Rathkeale () is a town in west County Limerick, in Ireland. It is 30 km (18 mi) southwest of Limerick city on the N21 road to Tralee, County Kerry, and lies on the River Deel. The town is in a townland and civil parish of the same n ...

are the reigning champions, having beaten Galbally by 0–11 to 0–07 in the 2024 final.

History

The Limerick Intermediate Football Championship dates back to 1911, with

Pallasgreen Pallasgreen or Pallasgrean () is a village in east County Limerick, Ireland. It is on the Limerick–Waterford N24 road, around southeast of Limerick city. The name means "the Stockade of Grian," referring to an ancient Irish Goddess of L ...

becoming the first winners of that once-off competition. The championship was revived after 64 years in 1975 and

Na Piarsaigh Na Piarsaigh Hurling and Football Club is a Gaelic Athletic Association club in Fair Hill, Cork, Ireland. The club is affiliated to the Seandún Board and fields teams in both hurling and Gaelic football. History Located in the Fair Hill area ...

were the winners. After three years the championship saw another hiatus, this time until 1988, when

Adare Adare (; ) is a village in County Limerick, Ireland, located southwest of the city of Limerick. Adare is designated as a heritage town by the Irish government. The village is in a townland and civil parish of the same name. History The River M ...

were the winners.

Format

Group stage

The 12 teams are divided into two groups of six. Over the course of the group stage, each team plays once against the others in the group. Two points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and zero for a loss. The teams are ranked in the group stage table by points gained, then scoring difference and then their head-to-head record. the top three teams in each group qualify for the knockout stage, with the two group winners receiving byes to the semi-finals.

Knockout stage

Quarter-finals: The second and third placed teams from the group stage contest this round. The two winning teams advance to the semi-finals. Semi-finals: The two quarter-final winners and the two top-ranked team from the group stage contest this round. The two winners from these games advance to the final. Final: The two semi-final winners contest the final. The winning team are declared champions.

Promotion and relegation

At the end of the championship, the winning team is automatically promoted to the Limerick Senior Championship for the following season. The two bottom-ranked teams from the group stage participate in a playoff, with the losing team being relegated to the Limerick Premier Junior A Championship.

Sponsorship

Griffin Coaches from Ardpatrick are the current sponsor of the championship.

Qualification for subsequent competitions

The Limerick Intermediate Championship winners qualify for the subsequent

Munster Intermediate Club Football Championship The Munster Football Intermediate Club Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 2003 for the top intermediate clubs in the province of Munster in Ireland. It i ...

. The Limerick winners have reached the final on six occasions but have never won the provincial title.

Roll of honour

List of finals

Notes: * 2019 – The first match ended in a draw: Gaeltee Gaels 1-08, Gerald Griffins 1-08.

References

External links

Limerick GAA website
{{Limerick GAA, state=expanded Gaelic football competitions in County Limerick Intermediate Gaelic football county championships Recurring sporting events established in 1911 1911 establishments in Ireland