Séamus Ó Riain Cup
The Séamus Ó Riain Cup (known for sponsorship reasons as the Tipperary Water Séamus Ó Riain Cup) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Tipperary County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 2017 for the second tier senior hurling teams in the county of Tipperary in Ireland.
| Séamus Ó Riain Cup | |
|---|---|
| Code | Hurling |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Region |  |
| Trophy | Séamus Ó Riain Cup |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Title holders |  |
| First winner |  |
| Sponsors | Tipperary Water |
| Official website | Official website |
The series of games are played during the spring, summer and autumn months with the cup final currently being played at Semple Stadium in October. It is sometimes played as the curtain-raiser to the senior final. The prize for the winning team is the Séamus Ó Riain Cup. The cup begins with a group stage and is followed by a knock-out stage.
Twelve clubs currently participate in the Séamus Ó Riain Cup. The title has been won at least once by two different clubs.
Burgess are the title-holders after defeating Moycarkey-Borris by 1-11 to 0-13 in the 2018 cup final.[1]
History
The Séamus Ó Riain Cup was created in 2017 in an effort to reduce the number of teams in the Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship. The cup was created for Roinn II teams. The Séamus Ó Riain Cup has been described as a senior hurling 'B' grade, though without the off-putting 'B' letter being used.
Format
Group stage
For the group stage there are three groups of four teams. The teams are ranked based on their performance the previous year.
Teams will play the other three teams in the group once and match points will be awarded depending on the result of each game, with teams receiving two points for a win, and one for a draw.
Following the completion of the group stage, the three group winners, and the three group runners-up qualify for the knock-out stage.
Knock-out stage
Two of the three group stage winners automatically qualify for the semi-finals. This is decided by points difference, score difference, scores for and in the event of a tie a coin toss. The third group stage winner and the three group stage runners-up qualify for the quarter-finals.
Sponsorship
Since 2017 the Séamus Ó Riain Cup has been sponsored by Tipperary Water.
Trophy
The winning team is presented with the Séamus Ó Riain Cup. A national school teacher by profession, Séamus Ó Riain (1916-2007) began his career in the administrative affairs of the Gaelic Athletic Association when he was elected secretary of the Moneygall club before later representing the club on the North Tipperary Board. In 1955 he was elected vice-chairman of the board before serving as chairman between 1957 and 1966. Ó Riain's growing expertise as an administrator was further rewarded in 1958 when he was elected as one of top Tipperary delegates on the Munster Council. In 1962 he was elected vice-chairman of the provincial council before taking over as chairman in 1965. Ó Riain served as the 22nd President of the Gaelic Athletic Association from 1967 until 1970.[2]
List of finals
| Year | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Score | Venue | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | |
2-18 (1-12) |  |
0-12 (1-12) | St. Flannan's Park | [3][4] |
| 2018 | |
1-11 |  |
0-13 | Semple Stadium | |
| 2019 | |
1-15 |  |
0-17 | Semple Stadium |
References
- Hogan, Liam (24 October 2018). "Burgess will their way to first senior success". Nenagh Guardian. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
- "Séamus Ó Riain". Hogan Stand. 3 February 2007. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
- McDonnell, Brian (8 October 2017). "Disappointing Séamus Ó Riain Cup final between Toomevara and Roscrea ends in a draw". Tipperary Live. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
- McDonnell, Brian (5 November 2017). "Tipperary GAA Round-Up: Toomevara streak to twelve-point Séamus Ó Riain Cup final win". Tipperary Live. Retrieved 11 August 2019.