All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 2005

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 2005

All Ireland Champions
Winners	Cork (30th win)
Captain	Seán Óg Ó hAilpín
Manager	John Allen
Provincial Champions
Munster	Cork
Leinster	Kilkenny
Ulster	Antrim
Connacht	Not Played
Championship Statistics
Matches Played	36
Player of the Year	Jerry O'Connor
All-Star Team	See here
← 2004 2006 →

The Guinness Hurling Championship 2005 began on Sunday, May 15, 2005. The 2005 championship saw some change with the introduction of a new format whereby after the provincial championships and the two new qualifying groups were completed, eight teams were left to face off in four quarter finals. Despite the change in the system there was no great shift in power. There was however a slight change to break the dominance of Cork and Kilkenny, the latter team being knocked out of the competetition at the semi-finals stage. The championship concluded on Sunday, September 11, 2005 when Cork defeated Galway with a score of 1-21 to 1-16 and retain their title as All-Ireland Senior Hurling Champions.

New Format

The following structure was used for the 2005 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship:

Twelve counties participated in Tier 1 of the 2005 Championship, essentially the counties that participated in Division 1 of the National Hurling League. These teams were as follows:

• Leinster: Dublin, Kilkenny, Laois, Offaly, Wexford
• Munster: Clare, Cork, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford
• Ulster: Antrim
• Connacht: Galway

The Leinster, Munster and Ulster championships were played off as usual. The Leinster and Munster champions and runners-up advanced directly to the All-Ireland Quarter-Finals. The three remaining teams in Leinster and Munster joined Galway and Antrim in the eight-county All-Ireland qualifier series. The eight qualifier teams were divided into two groups of four teams each:

• Group A: Each team will play the others in the group (3 games for each county)
• Group B: Each team will play the others in the group (3 games for each county)

The top two teams in Groups A & B joined the Leinster winners and runners-up and the Munster winners and runners-up in the All-Ireland Quarter-Finals. The pairings for these four games were as follows:

• (1) Leinster champions V. second placed team in one Qualifier group
• (2) Munster champions V. second placed team in the other Qualifier group
• (3) Leinster runners-up V. first placed team in one Qualifier group
• (4) Munster runners-up V. first placed team in the other Qualifier group

At the All-Ireland Semi-Finals stage the Leinster and Munster provincial champions were drawn against the other two Quarter-Final winners.

Cork's Championship Success

Cork completed their first season under the management of John Allen by winning their second All-Ireland title in as many years. It was the first time that the county achieved back-to-back titles since 1977-1978. Cork marched to the final with five successive victories, including the regaining of their Munster provincial title. Victories over Tipperary, Clare and twice against Waterford, all Munster teams coincidentally, ensured "the Rebels" a place in their third successive All-Ireland Final against Galway. A 1-21 to 1-15 victory over "the Tribesmen" landed Cork their second consecutive All-Ireland title. Key players in this triumph included goalkeeper Dónal Óg Cusack, backs Diarmuid O'Sullivan and John Gardiner, captain Seán Óg Ó hAilpín, as well as Ben and Jerry O'Connor, Brian Corcoran and Joe Deane.

Also in contention

Although Cork were the bookies favourites to retain the Liam MacCarthy Cup in 2005 they faced stiff competition from the other hurling superpowers. Kilkenny were naturally considered in contention, however, Clare and Galway proved their worth with great displays during the entire Championship.

Galway

Although Galway were not widely regarded as potential All-Ireland Final participants at the start of the Championship, the team soon grew into form. Managerial problems and defeats in previous years all pointed to another poor year for "the Tribesmen." A lack of opposition in Connacht also meant that Galway automatically qualified for the group stages. Three wins in Group A meant that the team topped the group and would not have to play Kilkenny in the Quarter-Finals. Instead Galway faced defeated Munster finalsists Tipperary in another thrilling game. This paved the way for a Semi-Final clash against hurling superpowers Kilkenny. In a game which was considered a hurling classic Galway defeated the Leinster Champions by 5-18 to 4-18. Following this Galway progressed to their first All-Ireland Final since 2001, and their first against Cork since 1990. The omens however were bad for Galway. They hadn't won a final since 1988 and have never beaten Cork in an All-Ireland Final. The game proved to be one too much for Galway, however they put up a gallant fight with Cork all the way. Following that defeat Conor Hayes said that he would like to remain with the team and battle again for the MacCarthy Cup in 2006. He did just that but 2006 was another bad year for Galway who lost to eventual winners Kilkenny in Semple Stadium. Conor Hayes was subsequently replaced with former Clare manager Ger Loughnane.

Kilkenny

From the beginning Kilkenny were hotly tipped to join Cork in the All-Ireland Final in what would be a third successive meeting in the final for "the Big Two." The duopoly by both "the Cats" and "the Rebels" looked set to continue when the former team won the National Hurling League earlier in the year and later regained their Leinster provincial title from Wexford. A lacklustre win over Limerick in the Quarter-Finals showed that Kilkenny were not as invincible as many had thought. The Semi-Final clash against Galway was considered by many to be the game of the Championship and indeed one of the classic games in recent years. In a display which contained all the great skills of hurling the commentator, Marty Morrissey, quipped, "It's a wonderful game when it's played like this." In all nine goals were scored between both teams, however, Galway were victorious with a massive score of 5-18 to Kilkenny's 4-18. The game had an "end of an era" type feel about it as speculation mounted that the manager Brian Cody and player D.J. Carey might retire.

Clare

Another team that wasn't tipped for success at the start of the year but proved the critics wrong was Clare. The Banner County hadn't been successful in recent years and a defeat to Tipperary in the semi-final of the Munster Championship looked like 2005 was not going to be a breakthrough year. However, the team did qualify for the Qualifiers where they topped Group B and booked their place in the All-Ireland Quarter-Finals. A defeat over Wexford allowed the "Banner" to advance to a Semi-Final clash with All-Ireland Champions Cork. In what was considered another contender to be the game of the Championship, Cork trailed by six points at half time. However, a remarkable comeback by the champions in the second half closed the deficit and allowed them to go on and win the game by one point. While nobody had expected it Clare came within a puck of the sliothar of booking a place in the All-Ireland Final.

Leinster Senior Hurling Championship

Game	Date	Venue	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Score
Leinster SHC 1st Round	May 22	Nowlan Park, Kilkenny	Laois	4-14	Dublin	0-14
Leinster SHC Semi-Final	June 12	Croke Park, Dublin	Wexford	0-24	Laois	1-10
Leinster SHC Semi-Final	June 12	Croke Park, Dublin	Kilkenny	6-28	Offaly	0-15
Leinster SHC Final	July 7	Croke Park, Dublin	Kilkenny	0-22	Wexford	1-16

Munster Senior Hurling Championship

Game	Date	Venue	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Score
Munster SHC 1st Round	May 15	Semple Stadium, Thurles	Tipperary	2-14	Limerick	2-14
Munster SHC 1st Round Replay	May 21	Páirc na nGael, Limerick	Tipperary	2-13	Limerick	0-18
Munster SHC Semi-Final	May 22	Semple Stadium, Thurles	Cork	2-17	Waterford	2-15
Munster SHC Semi-Final	June 5	Semple Stadium, Thurles	Tipperary	2-14	Clare	0-14
Munster SHC Final	June 26	Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork	Cork	1-21	Tipperary	1-16

Ulster Senior Hurling Championship

Game	Date	Venue	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Score
Ulster SHC 1st Round	May 15	Casement Park, Belfast	Down	4-25	London	1-17
Ulster SHC Semi-Final	May 22	Gaelic Park, New York	Antrim	2-20	New York	2-14
Ulster SHC Semi-Final	May 22	Casement Park, Belfast	Derry	2-9	Down	1-12
Ulster SHC Semi-Final Replay	May 29	Casement Park, Belfast	Down	3-19	Derry	4-9
Ulster SHC Final	June 5	Casement Park, Belfast	Antrim	2-22	Down	1-18

Hurling Championship Qualifiers - Group A

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	Scores For	Scores Against	Sco. Diff.
Galway	6	3	3	0	0	6-69 (87)	4-35 (47)	+40
Limerick	4	3	2	0	1	8-54 (78)	3-36 (45)	+33
Laois	2	3	1	0	2	3-41 (50)	5-53 (68)	-18
Antrim	0	3	0	0	3	2-35 (41)	7-75 (96)	-55

Game	Date	Venue	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Score
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 1	June 18	O'Moore Park, Portlaoise	Galway	2-22	Laois	2-11
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 2	June 25	Casement Park, Belfast	Limerick	4-25	Antrim	1-9
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 2	July 1	O'Moore Park, Portlaoise	Limerick	2-15	Laois	1-9
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 2	July 2	Pearse Stadium, Galway	Galway	3-29	Antrim	0-10
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 3	July 9	Casement Park, Belfast	Laois	0-21	Antrim	1-16
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 3	July 9	Páirc na nGael, Limerick	Galway	1-18	Limerick	2-14

Hurling Championship Qualifiers - Group B

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	Scores For	Scores Against	Sco. Diff.
Clare	6	3	3	0	0	6-49 (67)	1-41 (44)	+23
Waterford	4	3	2	0	1	5-64 (79)	6-32 (50)	+19
Offaly	2	3	1	0	2	4-41 (54)	4-52 (64)	-11
Dublin	0	3	0	0	3	3-36 (35)	7-55 (76)	-41

Game	Date	Venue	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Score
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 1	June 18	Parnell Park, Dublin	Clare	1-23	Dublin	0-9
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 1	June 18	Dr. Cullen Park, Carlow	Waterford	1-26	Offaly	1-15
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 2	July 2	O'Moore Park, Portlaoise	Clare	1-12	Offaly	1-11
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 2	July 2	Walsh Park, Waterford	Waterford	4-17	Dublin	1-3
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 3	July 9	Parnell Park, Dublin	Offaly	2-15	Dublin	2-14
All-Ireland Qualifiers Round 3	July 9	Cusack Park, Ennis	Clare	4-14	Waterford	0-21

Hurling Championship Relegation Section

Game	Date	Venue	Winner	Score	Runner-Up	Score
All-Ireland Qualifiers Relegation Semi-Final	July 23	Dr. Cullen Park, Carlow	Dublin	3-13	Laois	1-10
All-Ireland Qualifiers Relegation Semi-Final	July 23	Croke Park, Dublin	Offaly	5-17	Antrim	0-18
All-Ireland Qualifiers Relegation Final	July 30	Páirc Tailteann, Navan	Laois	1-23	Antrim	1-15

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

	Quarter Finals 24 July / 31 July					Semi Finals 14 August / 21 August					Final 11 September
		Cork	1-18
		Waterford	1-13
							Cork	0-16
							Clare	0-15
		Clare	1-20
		Wexford	0-12
												Cork	1-21
												Galway	1-16
		Tipperary	2-18
		Galway	2-20
							Galway	5-18
							Kilkenny	4-18
		Limerick	0-13
		Kilkenny	0-18

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July 24 Quarter-final	Clare	1-20 - 0-12	Wexford	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

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July 24 Quarter-final	Cork	1-18 - 1-13	Waterford	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

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July 31 Quarter-final	Galway	2-20 - 2-18	Tipperary	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

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July 31 Quarter-final	Kilkenny	0-18 - 0-13	Limerick	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

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August 14 Semi-final	Cork	0-16 - 0-15	Clare	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

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August 21 Semi-final	Galway	5-18 - 4-18	Kilkenny	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

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September 11 Final	Cork	1-21 - 1-16	Galway	Croke Park, Dublin Match Report

Main article: 2005 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final

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Top scorers

#	Player	Team	Score	Total
1	Ger Farragher	Galway	3-57	66
2	James Young	Laois	2-53	59
3	Henry Shefflin	Kilkenny	3-37	46
4	T.J. Ryan	Limerick	3-36	45
5	Eoin Kelly	Tipperary	1-36	39
6	Michael Coulter	Down	6-20	38
7	Paul Flynn	Waterford	3-26	35
8	Niall Gilligan	Clare	0-33	33
9	Ben O'Connor	Cork	1-26	29

External links

• Official GAA Website
• RTÉ Sport Website
• Hurling Statistics