Ulster Senior Hurling Championship


The Ulster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Ulster Championship, was an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association. It was the highest inter-county hurling competition in the province of Ulster, and was contested every year between the 1901 championship and the 2017 Championship. As of 2023 there had been no attempt to revive the competition.
The final, usually held in July, served as the culmination of a series of games played during June, and the results determined which team received the Liam Harvey Cup. The championship was played on a straight knockout basis whereby once a team loses they are eliminated from the championship.
In 2016, a two-tier format began with four teams competing in the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, and four in the Ulster Senior Hurling Shield.
The title has been won by five Ulster counties, all of which have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Antrim who have won the competition 57 times. Antrim are also the title holders, defeating Armagh by 5–22 to 1–12 in the 2017 final.

History

Standing of the Ulster Championship

While the Munster Hurling Championship and the Leinster Hurling Championship are generally held in very high regard, and have produced the vast majority of recent All-Ireland Hurling Champions, the Ulster Championship has not been regarded historically as of a similar standard, and the Ulster champions have entered the All-Ireland Hurling Championship at an earlier round than the Munster and Leinster champions.
This is due to a number of factors, one of which is the dominance of Gaelic football in eight of the nine counties of Ulster. An Ulster team has never won the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, although Antrim were finalists in 1943 and 1989. Antrim have dominated the Ulster Championship throughout its existence, winning the title 57 times to date.
While below the standard of Leinster and Munster hurling, the Ulster championship has been generally more competitive than the now discontinued Connacht Senior Hurling Championship. However, Galway, by far the strongest team in Connacht, have historically performed much better than any Ulster team, with several All-Ireland titles, and generally recognised as one of the major powers in the sport.

Ulster Championship moments

The following are a list of upsets and moments in the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship:
  • Down 2–16 – 0–11 Antrim – An historic day for Down who claimed a first provincial title since 1941. Victory would have been more decisive but for a tally of 13 wides in the first half. While Antrim lacked an attacking ace, Down's Gerard McGrattan was their candidate for man of the match. Goalkeeper Noel Keith also brought off some remarkable saves, most notably from a Ciaran Barr shot in the first half.
  • Derry 4–8 – 0–19 Antrim – An historic day for Derry who secured the Ulster title for the first time in 92 years. Dual player Kieran McKeever got the opening goal for Derry, while Gary Biggs and Ollie Collins scored Derry's other two goals to give Derry an eight-point interval lead. A replay looked likely after John O'Dwyer's late goal levelled the scores minutes from time, however, it was Collins again scoring from a free to gain the winning point, and the title for Derry.
  • Derry 1–17 – 3–10 Down – A first for Derry as they retain the Ulster title for the only time in their history. It was the first final not to feature Antrim since 1934. A point from John O'Dwyer won the match for Derry. Despite dominating the play in the second half, Down only managed to score three points.
  • Antrim 2–20 – 1–14 New York – For the first and only time in the history of the championships, the Ulster final was played at Canton Field in Boston. This was to facilitate some of the New York teams who were unable to travel to Ireland due to their immigration status. A tally of 1–7 for Johnny McIntosh helped Antrim to a fifth successive championship.

    Format

Ulster Senior Hurling Championship

In the first tier, the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, four teams compete in a knock-out format. The winners receive the Liam Harvey cup. The two teams beaten in the semi-finals of the Championship face each other in the relegation play-off with the losing team relegated to the following seasons Shield.

Ulster Senior Hurling Shield

In the second tier, the Ulster Senior Hurling Shield, four teams compete in a knock-out format, with the winner gaining promotion to the championship. Cavan do not participate.

Promotion/Relegation

The Shield winners are promoted to the championship and the loser of the championship relegation play-off are relegated.

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

There is no longer a direct path for the Ulster Champions in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. The Ulster counties now compete in the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship, Joe McDonagh Cup, Christy Ring Cup, Nicky Rackard Cup and Lory Meagher Cup.

Teams

2017 Championship

The championship was suspended after the completion of the 2017 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship. Four counties were scheduled to compete in 2018:
CountyLocationStadiumProvincePosition in 2017 ChampionshipFirst year in championshipIn championship sinceChampionship TitlesLast Championship Title
AntrimBelfastCorrigan ParkUlsterChampions19001989572017
ArmaghArmaghAthletic GroundsUlsterRunners-up194620070—
DerryDerryCeltic ParkUlsterChampions 1901201842001
DownNewryPáirc EslerUlsterSemi-finals1905198941997

2017 Shield

Debut of counties

List of Ulster Senior Hurling Championship counties

The following teams have competed in the Ulster Championship for at least one season.
TeamTotal yearsDebutChampionship titlesLast Championship titleBest Ulster result
Antrim1900572017Champions
Armagh19460—Runners-up
Cavan19080—Runners-up
Derry190142001Champions
Donegal190331932Champions
Down190541997Champions
Fermanagh19080—Semi-finals
London19980—Semi-finals
Monaghan190921915Champions
New York20000—Runners-up
Tyrone420080—Second round

List of Finals

List of finals

  • 1929 Antrim declared champions – Donegal disqualified
  • 1901: Antrim defeated Derry 41 points to 12 points – exact score not given

    Roll of Honour

Performance by county

Antrim's historic domination has led over time to periods of uncompetitive competitions, and the championship was not played at all between 1950 and 1988. However, there have been periods when this domination has made way for periods of intense rivalry, notably between Antrim and Monaghan in the 1910s, between Antrim and Down in the 1990s, and between Antrim and Derry in the early 2000s.
The 2001 Championship was unique in terms of being the only final since the reactivation of the Championship in 1988 which did not feature Antrim, as Derry defeated Down at Casement Park. Equally of note, Antrim have won every final since, their longest period of continuous success since 1988.

Performance by province

Ulster Senior Hurling Shield

CountyTitleRunners-upYears wonYears runner-up
Donegal102016—
Derry102017—
Monaghan01—2016
Tyrone01—2017

Team records and statistics

Team results

Legend
  • – Champions
  • – Runners-up
  • – Semi-finals/Quarter-finals
For each year, the number of teams are shown.
Team2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Years
Antrim2ndSF1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st18
Armagh———————QFQFQFQF2ndQFQFQFQF2nd2nd11
Cavan————————R1R1R1———————3
Derry1st1stSF2ndSFSFSFSFSFSFQFQF2ndSF2ndSFSF—17
Donegal————————R2R2R1PR——QFQF—SF7
DownSF2nd2ndSF2nd2ndSF2nd2nd2nd2ndSFSF2ndSF2ndSFSF18
Fermanagh————————R1R2R1PR——————4
LondonSFSFQFQFQFQFQFSFSFQFSF———————11
Monaghan————————QFR1R2QF——————4
New YorkQFQFSFSFSFSF2nd———————————7
Tyrone————————R2R1R2PR——————4