*Lissycasey’s Daire Culligan. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
Championship draws dominated the October meeting of Clare GAA at Clareabbey on Tuesday night.
Arising from last week’s meeting to discuss the format and dates for the under 21, chairman Kieran Keating told this week’s meeting that the groups would have to be re-drawn as the regulations were changing as delegates supported the suggestion from last week’s meeting that teams would have a game less at the group stage.
The change in format would now see teams play only two games in their group as opposed to three. Each team will have a home fixture and an away fixture, the game that was to be held at a neutral venue will not proceed.
He informed the meeting that the CCC recommendation was that team 1 in the group would have home advantage against team 2 with team 3 having home advantage against team 4.
In round 2 team 4 will enjoy home advantage against team 1 while team 2 will have home advantage against team 3. This format will apply in all groups of four groups with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the semi-finals.
In the event that two teams finish level on points, the result of their head to head contest will determine who is top. If the teams didn’t meet at the group stage, score difference will be used.
The under 21 D hurling will have three groups of three and the order of games here will be 1 v 2; 2 v 3 and 3 v 1 with the first named team enjoying home advantage,
The first round football games will take place on the weekend of October 18/19. with hurling first rounds a week later; Semi-finals will be on the weekends of November 15/19 with finals a week later.
At the knockout stage games in both codes will be played on the same weekend if there is no dual club involvement.
U21A Football
Group 1:
Wolfe Tones
Cooraclare
Kilrush/Killimer
Kilmurry Ibrickane
Group 2:
St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield
Ennistymon
Clondegad
Lissycasey
U21B Football
Group 1:
Cratloe
Clarecastle
Corofin
Clooney/Quin
Group 2:
St Breckans
Banner
Éire Óg
St Joseph’s Miltown
Under 21 C football
Group 1:
West Clare Gaels
Éire Óg
Doonbeg
Shannon Gaels/Kilmihil
Group 2:
Coolmeen/Kildysart
Parteen/Meelick
Clann Lír
U21A hurling
Group 1:
Ballyea
Éire Óg
Inagh/Kilnamona
Clooney/Quin
Group 2:
Sixmilebridge
Clarecastle
St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield
Cratloe
U21B hurling
Group 1:
Newmarket-on-Fergus
Kilmaley
Scariff/Ogonnelloe
Tulla
Group 2:
Corofin/Ruan
Feakle/Killanena
Broadford
Clonlara
U21C hurling: 3 groups of 4, top team in each with the best runner up to qualify for semi-finals
Group 1:
Bodyke
Crusheen
Wolfe Tones
Whitegate
Group 2:
Ennistymon
Ruan
O’Callaghans Mills
Tubber
Group 3:
Corofin
Banner
Parteen/Meelick
Smith O’Briens
U21 D hurling:
Group 1:
St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield
Éire Óg
Inagh/Kilnamona
Group 2:
Clooney/Quin
Clarecastle
Sixmilebridge
Group 3:
Ballyea
Scariff/Ogonnelloe
Clonlara
Junior semi-finals:
Meanwhile the draws for the semi-finals of the junior B and C regular and premier championships were also made and they resulted as follows
Junior B Premier;
Inagh/Kilnamona v Sixmilebridge
Broadford v Corofin
Junior B;
Éire Óg v Kilmaley
Ballyea v Smith O’Briens
Junior C Premier;
Whitegate v Scariff
Clonbony v Clooney/Quin
Junor C
Killanena v Wolfe Tones
Ennistymon v Tubber
Structures meeting:
Clare GAA will hold its annual structures meeting on Tuesday November 11 and the closing date for submitting proposals is November 1st.
Decisions taken at that meeting will determine the competition formats for 2026.
Head of Operations thanked:
Board chairman Kieran Keating paid tribute to departing Head of Operations Deirdre Murphy at this week’s meeting. “She is leaving Clare GAA in a better state of governance”, he said before adding “there is a challenging opportunity there now for someone else to pick it up from here. Applications close on October 24 and we encourage anybody interested to get their CV’s in”.
“On behalf of Newmarket I want to reiterate what you have said. Looking back on it, I’m surprised that she is only here three years. It was great for Newmarket working with her for the last number of years. We wouldn’t have been in here for a meeting five years ago”, Newmarket-on-Fergus delegate Pat Keogh said.
Munster delegate disappointed:
Munster Council delegate Bernard Keane told the meeting of his disappointment that a motion they had submitted had not got on the agenda for the last meeting of the provincial body.
The motion proposes that Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford get home advantage in any championship game against Cork and Kerry while the recently passed motion seeding Cork and Kerry in the Provincial competition is in place. “I understand that it will be on the agenda for the next meeting of the Council’s CCC committee”.
Corporate trustees:
Sixteen Clare clubs “haven’t done anything yet about switching to corporate trusteeship”, Bernard Keane told the meeting. Urging the clubs to look into this he informed the meeting that “eleven clubs have fully moved over while a number are in the process of dealing with the matter”. He urged clubs to deal with the issue.
Development grants:
Fourteen Clare clubs have made application to the Munster Council for development grants and Clare officers, Bernard Keane and Ambrose Heagney will be visiting those clubs.
Replying to a query, Keane informed the meeting that “sanding grants are no longer being provided. They have been withdrawn to enable bigger grants for bigger projects”.
Clare GAA will be dealing with scoreboard grants applications in the coming week, Head of Operations Deirdre Murphy told the meeting.
Congratulations:
Board chairman Kieran Keating extended congratulations to Éire Óg on winning the senior hurling championship last week. He went on to extend commiserations to beaten finalists Clooney/Quin.
