| Cork Senior Hurling Championship | |
|---|---|
| Irish | Craobh Iomána Sóisearach Chorcaí |
| Founded | 1887 |
| Trophy | Seán Óg Murphy Cup |
| Title holders | Carrigtwohill (2st title) |
| Most titles | Blackrock (32 titles) |
| Sponsors | Evening Echo |
The Evening Echo Cork County Senior Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for the top hurling teams in the county of Cork in Ireland.
The series of games are played during the summer and autumn months with the county final currently being played at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in October. The prize for the winning team is the Seán Óg Murphy Cup. The championship had always been played on a straight knockout basis whereby once a team loses they are eliminated from the series, however, in recent years there is a 'back door' for teams defeated in the first round.
The Cork County Championship is an integral part of the wider Munster GAA Senior Club Hurling Championship. The winners of the Cork county final join the champions of the other four hurling counties to contest the provincial championship.
Twenty-five clubs, divisions and colleges currently participate in the Cork County Championship. The title has been won at least once by nineteen different clubs. The all-time record-holders are Blackrock, who have won the competition 32 times. The other two members of the so-called 'big three' are Glen Rovers and St. Finbarr's who have won 25 titles each.
Sarsfields are the current title-holders after defeating Glen Rovers in the 2010 championship decider.
Contents |
The Cork Senior Club Hurling Championship is one of the most hotly-contested club hurling championships in Ireland. Such is the prestige of the competition that it has often been referred to as 'the little All-Ireland.' The first Cork Hurling Championship took place in 1887 when Tower St. were crowned the first Cork County Champions. There was no championship played in 1905 and 1921. Over the years the county final has attracted followers of the game from all over the country and has produced some legendary hurling battles. In 1977 a record-breaking 34,000 spectators watched St. Finbarr’s defeat Glen Rovers in the county final at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. The Cork SHC was at its strongest in the 1970s when a Cork team won the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship every year of the decade, except for 1971 and 1976. This success at club level paved the way for the Cork senior hurlers to win three All-Ireland hurling titles in-a-row between 1976 and 1978.
Blackrock, Glen Rovers and St. Finbarr's are affectionately known as "the Big Three" in Cork club hurling. Together they have won over 80 Cork County titles. While Blackrock has won the most Glen Rovers has the proud distinction of having won 8 Cork SHC titles in-a-row in the 1930s and 1940s. In recent years the dominance of these three clubs has diminished somewhat as the East Cork clubs have emerged successful. In the 2006 Cork SHC seven of the eight quarter-finalists were clubs from East Cork.
The Cork County Championship is a knockout tournament with pairings drawn at random—there are no seeds.
Each match is played as a single leg. If a match is drawn there is a replay. Drawn replays are now settled with extra time, however, if both sides are still level at the end of extra time a second replay takes place and so on until a winner is found.
Twenty-five teams currently take part in the championship, however, these teams are divided into two sections:
In 2010 the following 16 teams participated in the club section of the championship:
First Round: Sixteen teams contested this round. An open draw was made to determine the eight pairings. The eight winners of these games advanced directly to the fourth round, the last 16 of the championship. The eight losing teams advanced to the second round where they were provided with another chance to qualify for the knock-out stages.
Second Round: The eight losing first round teams contested this round. An open draw was made to determine the four pairings. The four winners of these games advanced directly to the fourth round, the last 16 of the championship. The four losing teams advanced to the third round where they were provided with a final chance to qualify for the knock-out stages.
Third Round: The four losing second round teams contested this round. An open draw was made to determine the two pairings. The two winners of these games advanced directly to the fourth round, the last 16 of the championship. The two losing teams contested the relegation final. The loser of this game was relegated to the Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship.
In 2010 the following 9 teams participated in the divisional and college section of the Cork SHC:
First Round: Six teams contested this round. An open draw was made to determine the three pairings. The three winners of these games advanced directly to the second round. The three losing teams were eliminated from the championship.
Second Round: Four teams contested this round. The three winners from the first round joined a fourth team who received a bye to this section. An open draw was made to determine the two pairings. The two winners of these games advanced directly to the third round. The two losing teams were eliminated from the championship.
Third Round: Four teams contested this round. The two winners from the second round joined the two college teams who both received a bye to this section. The two colleges were on opposite sides of the draw. The two winners of these games advanced directly to the last 16 of the championship. The two losing teams were eliminated from the championship.
Fourth Round Sixteen teams contested this round. It comprised the eight first round winners, six teams that came via the 'back door' route and the two teams from the divisional section. The eight first round winning-teams were on one side of the draw and could not meet each other. Eight teams advanced to the quarter-finals while the eight losing teams were eliminated from the championship at this stage.
Quarter-finals Eight teams contested this round. An open draw was made to determine the four pairings. The four winning teams advanced to the semi-finals while the four losing teams are eliminated from the championship at this stage.
Semi-finals Four teams contested this round. An open draw was made to determine the two pairings. The two winning teams advanced to the final while the two losing teams are eliminated from the championship at this stage.
Final The county final was contested by the two semi-final winners.
Since 2005 the Cork County Championship has been sponsored by the Evening Echo. The competition was previously sponsored by Permanent TSB.
The winning team is presented with the Seán Óg Murphy Cup. A native of Cork city, Sean Og Murphy (1897-1956) played hurling for Blackrock and football for Nils. He won three All-Ireland medals with Cork and served as secretary of Cork County Board from until his death in 1956.
| Team | Winner | Winning Years | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blackrock | 32 | 1887, 1889, 1891, 1893, 1894, 1895, 1897, 1898, 1903, 1908, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1920, 1924, 1925, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1956, 1961, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1985, 1999, 2001, 2002 |
| 2 | St.Finbarr's | 25 | 1899, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1919, 1922, 1923, 1926, 1932, 1933, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1955, 1965, 1968, 1974, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1993 |
| 2 | Glen Rovers | 25 | 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1944, 1945, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1953, 1954, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1967, 1969, 1972, 1976, 1989 |
| 4 | Midleton | 6 | 1914, 1916, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1991 |
| 5 | Redmonds | 5 | 1892, 1900, 1901, 1915, 1917 |
| 6 | Newtownshandrum | 4 | 2000, 2003, 2005, 2009 |
| 6 | Sarsfields | 4 | 1951, 1957, 2008, 2010 |
| 8 | Erin's Own | 3 | 1992, 2006, 2007 |
| 8 | Dungourney | 3 | 1902, 1907, 1909 |
| 8 | Avondhu | 3 | 1952, 1966, 1996 |
| 8 | Na Piarsaigh | 3 | 1990, 1995, 2004 |
| 12 | UCC | 2 | 1963, 1970 |
| 12 | Imokilly | 2 | 1997, 1998 |
| 12 | Carrigtwohill | 2 | 1918, 2011 |
| 15 | Tower Street | 1 | 1888 |
| 15 | Aghabullogue | 1 | 1890 |
| 15 | Ballyhea | 1 | 1896 |
| 15 | Éire Óg | 1 | 1928 |
| 15 | Carbery | 1 | 1994 |