IN ALL FAIRNESS - Club's shining in the summer limelight

The divisional championships were under threat a number of years back and I’ll be first to put my hands up to say I wasn’t sure where they were going to fit in the overall county championship structure in the timeframe that was there. However, the split season has given these championships new life, and crucially space in the calendar for them to take place.

What is different this year is there is a now a separate divisional championship for the O Riain level teams, called premier intermediate, and in a North context it has been an outstanding success. Gone are the mismatches between senior and premier intermediate teams which had been a feature of the North Championship in recent years. In the five matches in the senior championship, four went down to the wire with Nenagh v Templederry game the only one that failed to ignite and that isn’t Templederry’s true best. In the six premier intermediate games, three went to extra time, one to penalties, with the largest winning margin being seven points. The least you ask for in a competition is teams are competitive and have a chance of winning games and the titles itself, and we have that now.

While it was great to see North finals played last weekend at senior and premier intermediate level, most GAA supporters in the county would have preferred to be scrambling for their tickets to watch Tipperary play in an All-Ireland Hurling Final next Sunday. That wasn’t to be with the early exit of the senior hurlers from the championship, however, it did open up an opportunity for the clubs to fill the void with the divisional championships starting earlier than planned, and it has been taken with both hands, such were the crowds at the finals in the four divisions. It has been a long time since the North senior final had such a crowd as was in Cloughjordan on Sunday evening, admittedly helped by the fine weather, which brought hurling followers out in their thousands, not just Nenagh and Kiladangan supporters.

It goes to show the potential there is with the club championships when they are given good conditions to play in and considering August and September are generally fine weather months, and early October county finals, club players will really get to play in decent conditions.

With the divisional link remaining in the hurling championship, it has provided an old-style championship much like the 1990’s where divisional league winners were guaranteed a county championship playoff against the losers of a divisional championship final. In fact, it was a path which benefitted Toomevara on a number of occasions in their golden era. In a modern context, the divisional winners across the four division are now guaranteed a county championship knockout berth, via a preliminary quarter final, if the don’t make the county quarter finals by finishing in the top two positions in their group.

Indeed in the new premier intermediate championship, we already know there will be two preliminary quarter finals as the group made up of Portroe, Carrick Swan, Clonakenny and Cashel King Cormacs, all won their divisional championships last weekend, a remarkable coincidence. So, it should make their group games very exciting as the pressure is off to a certain extent as all four will get to the knockout stages, although two will have to play an extra game if it comes to it.

In the senior championship, Nenagh Eire Og, Clonoulty/Rossmore and JK Brackens have knockout berths via a preliminary quarter final safely secured, if they need to call on them. Nenagh and Clonoulty are in the same group and face off against each other in round 1 the weekend after next and in a group with Kilruane MacDonaghs and Moycarkey/Borris, there is no guarantee that that either divisional champion will emerge from that group straight to the quarter finals so having a wildcard of sorts in the back pocket is no harm at all.

For JK Brackens, winning a first ever Mid title at the weekend is historic, but the bonus of it is a knockout berth, particularly as they are in a group with the last two county champions Kiladangan and Loughmore/Castleiney, and the always challenging Eire Og Annacarty.

From the list of divisional winners, as interesting is who isn’t among them, particularly Borris-Ileigh, Drom & Inch and Thurles Sarsfields, who are all in the same group with Templederry Kenyons, which means at least one or possibly two of the title contenders will not make the knockout stages, so their games should be really intense.

Off the back of two really exciting and competitive county championships, the 2022 renewal has the potential to be even better.