The groups for the Liberty Insurance All-Ireland Senior, Intermediate and Premier Junior Championships have been decided and there will be some hotly contested fixtures throughout the three championships.
In the Liberty Insurance All-Ireland Senior Championship, reigning champions Cork have been drawn in a very competitive group 2 that features this year’s semi-finalists Tipperary, quarter-finalists Waterford and Dublin, while Meath and Clare complete the group.
Having met in the Semi-Final stage just a few months ago Kilkenny and Galway will face off once more as they have been drawn alongside each other in group 1. They will face competition from Offaly, Limerick and Wexford who all feature sharpshooters who revel in Championship action.
The two teams to top their respective groups will automatically qualify for the semi-finals, while second and third placed teams will qualify for the Quarter-Final stages.
This year there will see one team face relegation from the Senior Championship as the two teams to finish bottom of their groups will face off in a relegation play-off.
Senior:
Group 1: Kilkenny, Galway, Offaly, Limerick, Wexford
Group 2: Cork, Tipperary, Waterford, Meath, Dublin, Clare
In the Liberty Insurance All-Ireland Intermediate Championship, group 1 will feature some mouth-watering fixtures as champions Cork have been drawn alongside reigning Premier Junior Champions Dublin, 2017 runners up Kilkenny and 2017 Premier Junior Champions Westmeath, with Galway, Kildare and Antrim also joining them.
Group 2 will see last year’s beaten finalists Down face stiff competition from last year’s semi-finalists Tipperary, while Wexford, Laois, Derry and Carlow comprise group 2.
The top two teams in each group will qualify for the semi-final stage, with 1st in group 1 facing off against 2nd in group 2 while 1st in group 2 will face the runners up in group 1.
Both the Senior and Intermediate championships get underway on the 15th June.
Intermediate:
Group 1: Cork, Galway, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Antrim, Westmeath
Group 2: Down, Tipperary, Laois, Derry, Wexford, Carlow
In the Premier Junior Championship, group 1 is comprised of four teams – Roscommon, Armagh, Clare and Tyrone while five teams will contest group 2. They are last year’s finalists Kerry, Offaly, Wicklow, Limerick and Waterford. The top two teams in each group will qualify for the semi-final stage.
Action gets underway, beginning with group 1 on June 29th while the first round of games in group 2 will be on July 6th.
Premier Junior:
Group 1: Roscommon, Armagh, Clare, Tyrone
Group 2: Kerry, Offaly, Wicklow, Limerick, Waterford
Further dates and details on the fixtures will be released soon.
