Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship

The Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Echo Cork County Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork PIHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association and contested by the top-ranking intermediate clubs in the county of Cork in Ireland. It is the third tier overall in the entire Cork hurling championship system.

Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
Current season or competition:
2020 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
CodeHurling
Founded2004 (2004)
Region Cork (GAA)
TrophySéamus Long Cup
No. of teams12
Title holders Fr. O'Neill's (1st title)
First winner St. Catherine's
Most titles Ballinhassig (2 titles)
SponsorsThe Echo
Official websiteOfficial website

The Cork Premier Intermediate Championship was introduced in 2004 following a split in the existing Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship. At the time of its creation it was the second tier of Cork hurling.

In its soon-to-be introduced format, the Cork Premier Intermediate Championship will begin in April. The 12 participating club teams will be drawn into three groups of four teams and play each other in a round-robin system. The three group winners and the three runners-up proceed to the knockout phase that culminates with the final match at Páirc Uí Rinn in October. The winner of the Cork Premier Intermediate Championship, as well as being presented with the Séamus Long Cup, qualifies for the subsequent Munster Club Championship.

The competition has been won by 15 teams. Ballinhassig is the only team to have won the tournament on more than one occasion. Fr. O'Neill's are the reigning champions, having beaten Kilworth by 3–23 to 1–20 in the 2019 final.[1]

History

The Cork Intermediate Championship was founded in 1909 in an effort to bridge the standard of play between the Cork Senior Championship and the Cork Junior Championship. For almost a century, the Cork Intermediate Championship was effectively the second tier championship in the Cork hurling championship system.

In 2003 the Cork County Board Executive established a Hurling Championship Review Committee in an effort to improve the competitiveness of the Cork Senior Championship. The committee also proposed the splitting of the existing Cork Intermediate Championship in two with the creation of a 16-team Cork Premier Intermediate Championship which became the second tier of the Cork hurling championship system.

The championship was first played in 2004 with the winner, St. Catherine's, gaining automatic promotion to the following year's Cork Senior Championship. Their place in the championship was taken by Watergrasshill who won the Cork Intermediate Championship. The idea of relegation was introduced in 2006 with St. Finbarr's becoming the first team to be relegated from the championship after losing a play-off to Ballincollig. Similarly, Delaney Rovers became the first team to be relegated to the championship after losing their senior status following a play-off defeat by Castlelyons. Relegation was suspended in 2013 and again from 2015 to 2019.

Format

History

16 clubs entered the inaugural championship in 2004 and a double elimination format was used. Each team was guaranteed at least two games before being eliminated from the championship. In 2006 a relegation section was introduced. The four teams who lost both their games in Round 1 and Round 2 entered the relegation play-offs with the eventual losing team being relegated. An extra round of games was added to the championship in 2010. Each team was now given the opportunity of losing both of their games in Round 1 and Round 2 but remaining in the championship. This format remained in place until 2016 when it was decided to revert to the previous format.

Current

Development

On 2 April 2019, a majority of 136 club delegates voted to restructure the championship once again.[2][3] The new format also led to a reduction in the number of participating clubs from 16 to 12.

Overview

Group stage: The 12 club teams are divided into three groups of four. Over the course of the group stage, which features one game in April and two games in August, each team plays once against the others in the group, resulting in each team being guaranteed at least three games. Two points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and zero for a loss. The teams are ranked in the group stage table by points gained, then scoring difference and then their head-to-head record. The top two teams in each group qualify for the knockout stage, with the two best-placed teams receiving byes to the semi-finals.

Quarter-finals: Two lone quarter-finals feature the four lowest-placed team from the group stage. Two teams qualify for the next round.

Semi-finals: The two semi-finals feature four teams. Two teams qualify for the next round.

Final: The two semi-final winners contest the final. The winning team are declared champions and gain automatic promotion to the following year's Cork Senior A Championship.

Participating teams
Team Location Colours
Aghada Aghada Green and white
Ballincollig Ballincollig Green and white
Ballinhassig Ballinhassig Blue and white
Blackrock Blackrock Green and yellow
Blarney Blarney Red and white
Carrigaline Carrigaline Blue and yellow
Castlelyons Castlelyons Green and yellow
Courcey Rovers Ballinspittle Red and white
Inniscarra Inniscarra Blue and white
Valley Rovers Innishannon Green and white
Youghal Youghal Maroon and yellow
Watergrasshill Watergrasshill Red and white

Sponsorship

In keeping with its sponsorship deal for all Cork hurling championships, Permanent TSB provided the sponsorship for the inaugural championship in 2004. The Evening Echo became the primary sponsors of all Cork hurling championships the following year and have continued their sponsorship ever since.

Venues

Early rounds
The rebuilt Páirc Uí Chaoimh hosted the 2018 final between Charleville and Courcey Rovers.

Fixtures in the opening rounds of the championship are usually played at a neutral venue that is deemed halfway between the participating teams. Some of the more common venues include Clonmult Memorial Park, Páirc Shéamuis de Barra, St. Catherine's Park, Church Road and Páirc Liam Mhic Cárthaigh.

Final

The final has always been played at one of Cork GAA's two main stadiums. On several occasions the final has been played at Páirc Uí Chaoimh as the curtain raiser to the senior final. The rebuilding and subsequent improvement works to Páirc Uí Chaoimh resulted in several finals being held at Páirc Uí Rinn.[4]

Managers

Managers in the Cork Championship are involved in the day-to-day running of the team, including the training, team selection, and sourcing of players. Their influence varies from club-to-club and is related to the individual club committees. The manager is assisted by a team of two or three selectors and a backroom team consisting of various coaches.

Recent winning managers
Manager Team Wins Winning years
Dermot O'Riordan Carrigtwohill 1 2007
Tadhg Hurley Blarney 1 2008
Finbarr Bermingham Douglas 1 2009
Anthony McCarthy Ballymartle 1 2010
Diarmuid Corcoran Courcey Rovers 1 2011
Johnny Crowley Ballinhassig 1 2012
Christy Cooney Youghal 1 2013
Jimmy Quilty Ballyhea 1 2014
Eugene Desmond Newcestown 1 2015
Niall O'Halloran Bandon 1 2016
Donagh Duane Kanturk 1 2017
John Moloney Charleville 1 2018

Trophy

The winning team is presented with the Séamus Long Cup. A national school teacher by profession, Séamus Long (1884-1953) was elected secretary of the Ballincollig club in 1914, before serving as the first secretary of the Muskerry Board in 1924. A founder-member of the Ballinora club the same year, he was the club's first chairman. Long also served as vice-chairman of the Cork County Board and was a Munster Council delegate from 1949 until his death in 1953.

List of finals
Year Winners Score Runners-up Score Venue
2004 St. Catherine's 1-11 Courcey Rovers 1-08 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork
2005 Ballinhassig 1-16 Aghada 1-11 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork
2006 Bishopstown 0-20 Carrigtwohill 1-11 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [5]
2007 Carrigtwohill 3-14 Watergrasshill 3-12 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [6]
2008 Blarney 0-13 Courcey Rovers 1-09 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [7]
2009 Douglas 0-20 Ballymartle 0-16 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [8]
2010 Ballymartle 2-14 Tracton 0-13 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [9]
2011 Courcey Rovers 0-15 Youghal 1-09 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork [10]
2012 Ballinhassig 1-19 Bandon 1-12 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [11]
2013 Youghal 0-11 Castlelyons 0-10 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork [12]
2014 Ballyhea 1-17 Newcestown 0-16 Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork [13]
2015 Newcestown 1-23 Valley Rovers 0-08 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork [14]
2016 Bandon 1-20 Fermoy 1-14 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork [15]
2017 Kanturk 0-17 Mallow 1-12 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork [16]
2018 Charleville 0-15 (1-09) Courcey Rovers 0-14 (0-12) Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork [17]
2019 Fr O'Neills 3-23 Kilworth 1-20 Páirc Uí Rinn, Cork

Records and statistics

Final

Team

Top scorers

All time
As of match played 12 October 2019.
Rank Name Team Goals Points Total
1Ronan WalshTracton12336372
2Rob O'SheaCarrigaline14153195
3Noel McNamaraKilworth15136181
4Seán HayesMallow13141180
5Leigh DesmondYoughal12141177

By season
Overall
Year Top scorer Team Score Total
2004 Pa Dineen Mallow 3-25 34
2005 Trevor O'Keeffe Aghada 1-45 48
2006 Pa Cronin Bishopstown 3-36 45
2007 Ronan Walsh Tracton 5-30 45
2008 Ger O'Leary Fr. O'Neill's 2-38 44
2009 Daniel Twomey Newcestown 3-20 36
2010 Ronan Walsh Tracton 2-57 63
2011 Éamonn Collins Valley Rovers 6-33 51
2012 Ronan Crowley Bandon 4-33 45
2013 Ronan Walsh Tracton 2-46 52
2014 Adrian Mannix Kilworth 0-43 43
2015 Seán Hayes Mallow 4-36 48
2016 Liam Coleman Fermoy 3-51 60
2017 Chris O'Leary Valley Rovers 3-32 41
2018 Tadhg O'Sullivan Courcey Rovers 1-49 52
2019 Declan Dalton Fr. O'Neill's 3-45 54
Single game
Year Top scorer Team Score Total
2004 Pa Dineen Mallow 1-09 12
2005 Neil Ronan Ballyhea 2-08 14
2006 Pa Cronin Bishopstown 2-07 13
2007 Leigh Desmond Youghal 1-09 12
2008 Ger O'Leary Fr. O'Neill's 2-09 15
2009 Daniel Twomey Newcestown 0-12 12
Maurice O'Sullivan Ballyhea
2010 Ronan Walsh Tracton 0-13 13
2011 Aaron Sheehan Mallow 1-10 16
Rory O'Doherty Ballincollig
2012 Ronan Crowley Bandon 3-06 15
2013 Ronan Walsh Tracton 2-10 16
Adrian Mannix Kilworth 1-13
2014 Adrian Mannix Kilworth 0-13 13
2015 Seán Hayes Mallow 2-13 19
2016 Noel McNamara Kilworth 3-05 14
2017 Chris O'Leary Valley Rovers 1-10 13
2018 Tadhg O'Sullivan Courcey Rovers 1-09 12
Shane O'Regan Watergrasshill 0-12
2019 Brian Kelleher Carrigaline 2-10 16
Brian Kelleher Carrigaline

In finals
Cumulative
Pos. Player Team Score Total
1 Ronan Crowley Bandon 2-16 22
2 Tadhg O'Sullivan Courcey Rovers 0-15 15
3 Daniel Twomey Newcestown 1-11 14
Declan Dalton Fr. O'Neill's
4 Seánie O'Farrell Carrigtwohill 3-02 11
Rory O'Dwyer Ballymartle 0-11
Niall McCarthy Carrigtwohill
Noel McNamara Kilworth
5 Fintan O'Leary Ballinhassig 2-04 10
Leigh Desmond Youghal 1-07
Individual
Year Top scorer Team Score Total
2004 Michael Hegarty Courcey Rovers 0-05 5
2005 Trevor O'Keeffe Aghada 0-09 9
2006 Pa Cronin Bishopstown 0-09 9
2007 Seánie O'Farrell Carrigtwohill 3-01 10
2008 Cian Lordan Courcey Rovers 1-03 6
2009 Rory O'Dwyer Ballymartle 0-10 10
2010 Ronan Walsh Tracton 0-07 7
2011 Leigh Desmond Youghal 1-04 7
2012 Ronan Crowley Bandon 1-06 9
2013 Colm Spillane Castlelyons 0-07 7
2014 Daniel Twomey Newcestown 0-06 6
2015 Daniel Twomey Newcestown 1-05 8
2016 Ronan Crowley Bandon 1-10 13
2017 Lorcán McLoughlin Kanturk 0-08 8
2018 Tadhg O'Sullivan Courcey Rovers 0-08 8
2019 Declan Dalton Fr. O'Neill's 1-11 14

References
  1. Horgan, John (13 October 2019). "Dalton and Dunne deliver glory for Fr O'Neill's hurlers against Kilworth". Evening Echo. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
  2. Cormican, Eoghan (26 March 2019). "Here's a breakdown of the proposals to restructure the Cork county championships". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  3. "Cork clubs vote down radical restructuring proposals". RTÉ Sport. 2 April 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  4. Horgan, John (28 July 2019). "Work on the new pitch at Páirc Uí Chaoimh is underway to take advantage of summer growth". Evening Echo. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  5. Larkin, Brendan (21 October 2006). "Bishopstown's young guns bid to come of age". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  6. "Carrigtwohill make the ascent". Hogan Stand. 15 January 2008. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  7. "Blarney make the breakthrough". Southern Star. 25 October 2008. Archived from the original on 17 February 2013. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  8. Weldon, Eoin (15 October 2009). "Douglas set for senior". Cork Independent. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  9. Moynihan, Michael (11 October 2010). "Tracton second best again in derby duel". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  10. Lester, Bob (10 October 2011). "Clinical Courcey's finally go the distance". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  11. O'Callaghan, Therese (8 October 2012). "Ballinhassig back at the top table". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  12. O'Callaghan, Therese (14 October 2013). "Youghal smash 'n' grab". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
  13. Hurley, Denis (13 October 2014). "Ballyhea 'yes' at return to senior ranks". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  14. Hurley, Denis (12 October 2015). "Five-star Newcestown's glorious day". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  15. O'Callaghan, Therese (10 October 2016). "Masterclass by Ronan Crowley earns Bandon senior status". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  16. O'Callaghan, Therese (9 October 2017). "Kanturk the kingpins after show of fitness and courage". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  17. O'Callaghan, Therese (30 October 2018). "Charleville back in the big time as Courceys held at bay". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
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