Connacht Senior Club Hurling Championship

Connacht Senior Club Hurling Championship
Irish	Craobh Sinsir Iománaíochta Connachta na gClub
Founded	1970
Title holders	Portumna (4th title)
First winner	Liam Mellows
Most titles	Athenry (8 titles)

The Connacht Senior Club Hurling Championship is an annual hurling tournament played between the senior hurling clubs in Connacht contested from 1970 until it became defunct after the conclusion of the 2007-08 season due to a lack of meaningful opposition for the Galway champions for quite some time. The winners of the Connacht hurling championship went on to qualify for the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship semi-final. Winners qualified for this competition by winning their respective senior county championships in Connacht. Since Galway has traditionally been much stronger than the other counties involved, its county champions automatically qualified for the final, with the other sides beginning at the quarter final stage. In 2007, the competition's final year, this competition was won by Portumna from Galway. The competition had long since become a formality for the Galway teams.

Since the annulment of the competition, the Galway champions now qualify for the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship semi-final. In the latter half of the 2000s, Portumna dominated hurling on the national stage, contesting four All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship finals in five years, winning three. Clarinbridge (2011) and St. Thomas's (2013) have also won All-Irelands for Galway in recent years.

Currently the champions from Mayo and Roscommon compete in the Connacht Intermediate Club Hurling Championship against the Galway Intermediate champions. Sligo and Leitrim champions participate in the Connacht Junior Club Hurling Championship, again with the Galway side entering the competition at the final stage.

History

Given traditional lack of meaningful competition for Galway within the province, the competition was - save for a number of moments - a formality with terribly one-sided games often being the norm. Thus it was not taken seriously by many when considered in relation to the All-Ireland stage. However, while the competition was dominated by the Galway sides throughout its history, the title left the county three times in all, with Roscommon providing the winners on these occasions with Four Roads winning two titles in 1977 and 1988, while Tremane won their sole title in 1976. Tremane won their title courtesy of a shock win over Kiltormer on a scoreline of 2-7 to 1-9, and went on to play the well renowned Glen Rovers of Cork in the semi final in late 1976.

Four Roads were awarded the 1977 championship as a result of Galway champions Kiltormer being handed a suspension by the Galway County Board for incidents which took place match involving the club, which happened after Kiltormer had won the Galway title and were due to play in the decider.^[1] Four Roads went on to represent Connacht in that years All-Ireland series. Their second and final victory, won on the field of play, was a much more memorable occasion as the title was wrestled from the Galway champions at a time when Galway hurling was riding the crest of a wave, having just won the second of back to back All-Ireland hurling titles in 1988. Like their previous All-Ireland semi final appearance, they were up against Wexford opposition, this time in the form of Buffers Alley, but lost out on a scoreline of 2-19 to 0-9.

Mayo side Toureen reached the final on numerous occasions, most recently in 1999 when they lost to eventual All-Ireland champions Athenry,^[2] while Ballina and Ballyhaunis made sole appearances for Mayo at the final stage. No Sligo or Leitrim side competed in a final throughout the competition's existence.

Top winners

	Team	Wins	Years won	Last Losing Final
1	Athenry	8	1987, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004	N/A
2	Sarsfields	7	1980, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2015	N/A
3	Castlegar	4	1972, 1973, 1979, 1984	N/A
4	Portumna	3	2003, 2005, 2007,	N/A
	Kiltormer	3	1982, 1990, 1991	1977
	Ardrahan	3	1974, 1975, 1978	N/A
7	Four Roads	2	1977, 1988	2005
	Gort	2	1981, 1983	N/A
9	Loughrea	1	2006	N/A
	Clarinbridge	1	2001,	N/A
	Killimordaly	1	1986	N/A
	Turloughmore	1	1985	N/A
	Tremane	1	1976	1980
	Tommy Larkin's	1	1971	N/A
	Liam Mellows	1	1970	N/A

List of finals

Year	Winner	Score	County	Opponent	Score	County
2008	No Competition
2007	Portumna	6-23	Galway	Ballina	0-7	Mayo
2006	Loughrea	2-16	Galway	Athleague	2-3	Roscommon
2005	Portumna	2-22	Galway	Four Roads	0-6	Roscommon
2004	Athenry	2-16	Galway	Ballyhaunis	0-7	Mayo
2003	Portumna	0-17	Galway	Athleague	0-5	Roscommon
2002	Athenry	1-19	Galway	Four Roads	0-9	Roscommon
2001	Clarinbridge	2-18	Galway	Four Roads	1-6	Roscommon
2000	Athenry	2-16	Galway	Four Roads	1-7	Roscommon
1999	Athenry	1-13	Galway	Toureen	1-6	Mayo
1998	Athenry	3-25	Galway	Tooreen	0-5	Mayo
1997	Sarsfields	5-15	Galway	Tooreen	1-5	Mayo
1996	Athenry	1-15	Galway	Four Roads	1-8	Roscommon
1995	Sarsfields	2-17	Galway	Tooreen	0-5	Mayo
1994	Athenry	3-20	Galway	St Dominic's	2-03	Roscommon
1993	Sarsfield's	5-12	Galway	Four Roads	0-07	Roscommon
1992	Sarsfields	2-15	Galway	Oran	0-07	Roscommon
1991	Kiltormer	2-09	Galway	Four Roads	1-06	Roscommon
1990	Kiltormer	5-11	Galway	Oran	0-06	Roscommon
1989	Sarsfields	5-14	Galway	Tooreen	0-00	Mayo
1988	Four Roads	3-05	Roscommon	Abbeyknockmoy	1-08	Galway
1987	Athenry	4-18	Galway	Pádraig Pearse's	0-07	Roscommon
1986	Killimordaly	6-16	Galway	Tooreen	1-04	Mayo
1985	Turloughmore	1-08	Galway	Ballygar	2-04	Roscommon
1984	Castlegar	2-14	Galway	Tooreen	2-07	Mayo
1983	Gort	3-13	Galway	Tooreen	1-05	Mayo
1982	Kiltormer	3-14	Galway	Four Roads	0-06	Roscommon
1981	Gort	8-13	Galway	Tooreen	0-03	Mayo
1980	Sarsfields	4-12	Galway	Tremane	0-05	Roscommon
1979	Castlegar	1-16	Galway	Tremane	1-09	Roscommon
1978	Ardrahan	2-09	Galway	Tooreen	1-07	Mayo
1977	Four Roads	w/o	Roscommon	Kiltormer	(susp.)	Galway
1976	Tremane	2-07	Roscommon	Kiltormer	1-09	Galway
1975	Ardrahan	2-14	Galway	Athleague	1-04	Roscommon
1974	Ardrahan	9-12	Galway	Tooreen	1-06	Mayo
1973	Castlegar	7-08	Galway	Tremane	1-07	Roscommon
1972	Castlegar	7-12	Galway	Tremane	2-07	Roscommon
1971	Tommy Larkin's	7-14	Galway	Four Roads	0-06	Roscommon
1970	Liam Mellows	4-10	Galway	Roscommon Gaels	2-05	Roscommon

References

All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championships

Seasons	1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16

Finals	1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Connacht Championship Leinster Championship Munster Championship Ulster Championship

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