The launch of the 2024 championships, incorporating Hurling, Football, LGFA and Camogie took place on Friday at the Crown Plaza Hotel, Shaw’s Bridge, and while it would be fair to say there was a little nervousness and trepidation about it at the start, Jerome Quinn’s interviews with the players afterwards showed that it proved a very popular decision among the players in all four codes.
With the three chairpersons in attendance, Seamus McMullan (county chairperson), Fionnuala Murphy (LGFA) and Liam Vallely (Camogie), the draws for the senior sections were done by players from the other codes i.e. the hurlers made the football draws and vice-versa.
In the football county champions Cargin, who have won seven of the last nine titles, are in Group 2 with Rossa, St John’s and Tir na nÓg, the same teams they faced in last year’s round-robin.
Group 1 contains last year’s surprise packets Dunloy, who face Aldergrove, 2017 champions Lamh Dhearg and Naomh Eanna. Group 3 is an all South-West affair with Portglenone, Moneyglass, Ahoghill and new boys Con Magees Glenravel facing off, while Group 4 has 2021 champions Creggan paired with the most successful team of the twenty-first century St Gall’s and last year’s semi-finalist St Brigid’s.
Creggan’s eleventh hour withdrawal from the Senior Hurling Championship meant that just seven teams went into the draw. The bye was drawn out in Group 1 with last year’s runners-up Loughgiel being joined by Ballycastle and Naomh Eanna.
Group 2 is fascinating, with county champions Cushendall being joined by Dunloy, who are bidding for their sixth title in eight years, the two great Befast rivals St Johns and Rossa, who once again find themselves in the same group.
In the LGFA draw county champions Moneyglass are paired with Con Magee, Glenravel, last season’s runners up St Paul’s play last year’s Intermediate champions Glenavy, while St Brigid’s have a bye.
With the Senior Camogie Championship being played on a round-robin basis the only thing to determine is the order of the games and dates and that will be decided later.
The draws for the Intermediate and Junior Championships in each code will be made later in the week.
