Senior hurlers set out on Leinster Championship road

Tue, 17th May 2016

DUBLIN v WEXFORD

They meet in the Leinster championship for the fourth time in four seasons. Dublin won in 2014 and 2013 (replay), having also won in 2009. It leaves Wexford seeking their first championship win over Dublin since 2008.

LAST FIVE CHAMPIONSHIP CLASHES

2014: Dublin 0-22 Wexford 1-14 (Leinster semi-final)

2013: Dublin 1-17 Wexford 0-12 (Leinster SH quarter-final) Replay

2013: Dublin 1-17 Wexford 1-17 (Leinster quarter-final) Draw

2009: Dublin 0-18 Wexford 1-13 (Leinster semi-final)

2008: Wexford 2-15 Dublin 1-15 (Leinster semi-final) Replay

MOST RECENT CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Dublin 0-22 Wexford 1-14 (2014 Leinster semi-final, Wexford Park)

Alan McCrabbe (0-9) and Conal Keaney (0-5) scored 0-14 between them for the winners. Dublin led by 0-11 to 1-6 at half-time.

MOST RECENT CLASH

Dublin 1-22 Wexford 1-12 (2016 Walsh Cup final: 30 January, Croke Park.

Paul Ryan scored 0-10 as Dublin ran out easy winners.

2016 ALLIANZ LEAGUE

Dublin: 3rd 1A – lost to Limerick in quarter-final (Played 6, Won 3, Lost 3)

Wexford: 3rd 1B – lost to Waterford in quarter-final (Played 6, Won 2, Lost 4)

DID YOU KNOW?

Wexford will be playing a championship game in Croke Park for the first time since 2008 when they lost the Leinster final to Kilkenny.

THE ROAD AHEAD

The winners will play Kilkenny in the Leinster semi-final on June 11; the losers head for the qualifiers on July 2.

MANAGEMENT

Ger Cunningham is in his second season as Dublin manager while Liam Dunne is in his fifth term with Wexford.

BIG MUNSTER CLASH IN THURLES

The clash of Tipperary and Cork is the first of the really big attractions in the 2016 GAA hurling All-Ireland championship and comes your way next Sunday when the great rivals meet in the Munster quarter-final (Semple Stadium, Thurles, 4.0).

There’s important action in Leinster too. Dublin play Wexford in the quarter-final in Croke Park on Saturday (7.15) while the clash of Offaly and Kerry in O’Connor Park, Tullamore on Sunday (3.0) will decide who joins Westmeath as the two ‘round robin’ representatives in the quarter-finals. Westmeath, who booked a quarter-final spot with wins over Offaly and Kerry, play Carlow in Netwatch Cullen Park.

TIPPERARY v CORK

It remains one of hurling’s biggest attractions, having delivered some remarkable contests in a rivalry which began in Buttevant on 27 May 1888. The intervening 128 years have seen the counties meet in 83 championship games, with Tipperary holding the tiniest advantage, having won 38 to Cork’s 37, with seven draws and one abandoned game.

Tipperary have beaten Cork in six of their last seven championship games since 2007 (the exception was 2010 when Cork easily won a Munster quarter-final clash before Tipperary recovered and won the All-Ireland title).

Prior to 2007, Cork had won the previous five championship clashes with Tipperary.

LAST FIVE CHAMPIONSHIP CLASHES

2014: Tipperary 2-18 Cork 1-11 (All-Ireland semi-final)

2012: Tipperary 1-22 Cork 0-24 (Munster semi-final)

2011: Tipperary 3-22 Cork 0-23 (Munster quarter-final)

2010: Cork 3-15 Tipperary 0-14 (Munster quarter-final)

2009: Tipperary 1-19 Cork 0-19 (Munster quarter-final)

MOST RECENT CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Tipperary 2-18 Cork 1-11 (2014 All-Ireland semi-final, Croke Park)

Cork, beaten All-Ireland finalists in 2013, won the 2014 Munster title but were well beaten by Tipperary in the All-Ireland semi-final. Tipperary led by 1-7 to 0-8 at half-time and increased their advantage in the second-half to run out ten point winners. Seamus Callanan (2-4) and John O’Dwyer (0-6) provided 2-10 of Tipperary’s total.

MOST RECENT CLASH

Tipperary 2-27 Cork 2-15 (Allianz HL 20 March 2016, Semple Stadium)

Tipperary led by 0-13 to 0-10 at half-time and extended their lead by a further nine points in a low-key second-half.

2016 ALLIANZ LEAGUE

Tipperary: 4th 1A – lost quarter-final to Clare. (Played 6, Won 2, Drew 1, Lost 3)

Cork: 6th 1A – won relegation play-off with Galway (Played 6, Won 1, Lost 5)

DID YOU KNOW?

Cork’s last championship win over Tipperary in Semple Stadium was in 2006 when then won the Munster final by 2-14 to 1-14.

THE ROAD AHEAD

The winners will play Limerick in the Munster semi-final on June 19; the losers head for the qualifiers on July 2.

MANAGEMENT

Both are under new management with Michael Ryan (Tipperary) and Kieran Kingston (Cork) in their first season, having replaced Eamon O’Shea and Jimmy Barry-Murphy respectively.

LEINSTER ROUND ROBIN - FINAL ROUND

OFFALY v KERRY;

CARLOW v WESTMEATH

Having won their first two games, Westmeath have booked a place in the Leinster quarter-final ahead of their outing against Carlow next Sunday.

Carlow lost their first two games so they are out of contention so the focus will be very much on the Offaly v Kerry game in O’Connor Park as the winners will join Westmeath in the Leinster quarter-finals.

Both Kerry and Offaly lost to Westmeath and beat Carlow to set up a crunch clash.

It’s the second time in nine weeks that Kerry and Offaly will have met in important games, with the Kingdom gaining a psychological edge with a one-point win (2-18 to 2-17) in the final series of Allianz League Div 1B games in Birr on March 20. It was Kerry’s first win over Offaly since 1957.

2016 GAA HURLING ALL-IRELAND CHAMPIONSHIPS

LEINSTER

ROUND ROBIN

May 1: Round 1: Westmeath 2-22 Offaly 1-11, TEK, Cusack Park; Kerry 2-19 Carlow 0-17, Tralee.

May 7: Round 2: Westmeath 1-18 Kerry 1-13, Tralee; Offaly 1-17 Carlow 2-11, O’Connor Park.

May 15: Round 3: Carlow v Westmeath, Netwatch Cullen Park; Offaly v Kerry, O’Connor Park.

May 21: Quarter-final: Dublin v Wexford, Croke Park.

June 5: Quarter-final: Round Robin winners v Galway; Round Robin runners-up v Laois.

June 11: Semi-final: Dublin/Wexford v Kilkenny; Wexford Innovate Park or O’Moore Park.

June 19: Semi-final: Round Robin winners/Galway v Round Robin runners-up/Laois.

July 2: Final, Croke Park.

MUNSTER