2018 was the first minor competition for under 17-year-olds – previously the competition had an under eighteen age limit. The under seventeen championship with a new format was introduced after a vote at the GAA Congress on 26 February 2016.
A league format is followed in Connacht and Leinster. Munster introduced a double league format in 2019 with the winners of an initial Phase 1 league containing weaker teams advancing to a Phase 2 league where they play in a 3-team league with Cork and Kerry. Ulster still plays a knockout championship.
The winners will receive the Tom Markham Cup.
Teams
Thirty-two teams from Ireland contested the championship. New York and London did not participate in this competition.
Competition format
Provincial Championships
Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster each organised provincial championship. Each province decided its own rules for determining their champions. The formats for the 2019 provincial championships are explained in the sections below.
All-Ireland
The four provincial winners play the four provincial runners-up in the All-Ireland quarterfinals. Two semi-finals and a final follow. All matches are played in a single knockout format. The minor final is normally played before the All-Ireland senior final.
All five Connacht counties compete in a single round robin format.[1] The top three teams in the round robin table meet again in the Connacht semi-final and final.
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: [citation needed] Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where only two teams are involved, the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the competition; 3) Scoring difference; 4) Highest total score for; 5) A play-off.
Leinster teams competed in 3 groups, each of 4 teams. Each team in a group plays a single match against the other teams.[2] The first two teams in each group progress to the Leinster semi-finals.
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: [citation needed] Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where only two teams are involved, the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the competition; 3) Scoring difference; 4) Highest total score for; 5) A play-off.
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: [citation needed] Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where only two teams are involved, the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the competition; 3) Scoring difference; 4) Highest total score for; 5) A play-off.
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: [citation needed] Rules for classification: 1) League points; 2) Where only two teams are involved, the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the competition; 3) Scoring difference; 4) Highest total score for; 5) A play-off.
Fionn Murray 0-6 (0-3f, 1 '45), Alex Rogers 0-4, Ryan O'Dwyer 0-3 (0-2f), Luke Curran 0-2, Luke Murphy-Guinane, Sean Kinsella, Robbie Bolger, Luke Swan, Ross Keogh 0-1 each
Fionn Murray 0-6 (0-3f, 1 '45), Alex Rogers 0-4, Ross Keogh 0-3, Senan Forker, Conor Archer, Ryan O'Dwyer (0-1f), Robbie Bolger, Luke Murphy-Guinane 0-1 each
In 2018 the Ulster Championship changed to a double-elimination format, which replaced the straight knockout style of previous years. Every team who lost a match before the semi-finals re-entered the competition via the Qualifiers Round 1 (R1), Qualifiers Round 2 (R2) or Qualifiers Round 3 (R3). This ensured that all teams played at least two games.[4] The semi-finals and final were knockout.
The winners received the Father Murray Cup.
Ulster Direct Route
Ulster Preliminary Round
Two of the nine teams were drawn to play in the preliminary round.
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Ulster Round 1
The seven teams who avoided the preliminary round plus the winners of the preliminary round competed in four matches in round 1.
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Ulster Round 2
The four winning teams from round 1 met in two matches.
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Ulster Qualifier Route
Ulster Qualifiers R1
Two of the five teams beaten in the preliminary round or round 1 met in a playoff match. The losing team was eliminated from the competition.
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Ulster Qualifiers R2
The four remaining teams who lost only one match in the preliminary round or round 1 met in two matches with the two losing teams being eliminated,
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Ulster Qualifiers R3
The two losing teams from round 2 (who lost only one match) met the two winning teams from the qualifiers R2. The two losing teams were eliminated from the competition.
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Ulster Knockout Stage
Ulster Semi-Finals
The two winning teams from round 2 met the two winning teams from the qualifiers R3. The two losing teams were eliminated from the competition.
P Campbell 1-5 (0-5f), M O’Neill 1-3 (0-2f), C Corbett 1-3 (0-2f), R O’Donovan 0-3 (0-1f), D Linehan 0-2, D Cashman 0-1, K Scannell 0-1, A Walsh Murphy 0-1.