Tipp face Limerick start on the double
By Shane Brophy
Tipperary’s senior hurlers and footballers will be heading Shannonside for their first games in the Allianz Leagues when they finally get underway next month.
Liam Sheedy’s senior hurlers will be thrown in at the deep end on Saturday 8th May with the start of the Allianz Hurling League when they take on the defending league, Munster, and All-Ireland champions. In the provisional fixtures which are set to be confirmed later this week, Liam Sheedy’s charges will provide the guard of honour Limerick at the LIT Gaelic Grounds in three weeks’ time, with the game throwing in at 5.30pm.
After confirmation last week following the release of the GAA’s revised fixtures calendar, Tipperary’s hurling league schedule of five games will be the exact reverse of 2020. In round 2, they will welcome Cork to Semple Stadium on the weekend of 15-16 May, and the following Sunday, 23rd May they will host Galway with a 1.30pm throw-in.
There will be a week’s break before Tipperary’s final two league games which will be away from home against Westmeath on 5-6 June and Waterford a week later, with the exact fixture details to be confirmed.
After the majority of division 1 counties opted for a five-game league schedule to build-up for the championship, there will be no quarter-finals, semi-finals, or final. There will either be joint-winners, or if the teams that win Division 1A and Division 1B (Clare, Kilkenny, Wexford, Dublin, Laois & Antrim) meet in the Championship, this will double as a League Final. The bottom two teams in each division will meet in a Relegation Play-off which will be played as curtain-raiser to one of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Semi-Finals on 7-8 August.
A five-game league schedule will be welcomed by Tipperary manager Liam Sheedy who pressed for it as it provides more flexibility to give most of his squad some valuable game time. It will also afford him the opportunity get the experienced players up to speed without overplaying them, while also providing an opportunity to hand some fringe players an opportunity to be involved when the championship gets underway in late June or early July, depending on their Munster Championship draw which will be made next Monday morning.
Gaelic Football
Tipperary will begin their quest for promotion from Division 3 of the National Football League on the weekend of 15-16 July away to Limerick.
It is a tough start for David Power’s charges facing a Limerick side they were fortunate to defeat, after extra time, in the Munster semi-final last November, before going onto win a historic first provincial title in 85 years.
Tipperary will welcome Wicklow to Thurles in round 2 on 22-23 May with their final game against Offaly in Tullamore on Saturday 29 May.
The top two teams from this section will progress to the league semi-finals on 12-13 June against the corresponding teams in the northern region, Cavan, Derry, Fermanagh, and Longford.
If Tipperary do reach a league final on 19-20 June, promotion will have already been secured, and if their opponents are in championship action a week later, the final will not be played.
The bottom two teams in each group will play relegation semi-finals on 12-13 June with the two losers of those matches relegated to Division 4.