Sport

Clare could face Offaly or Kilkenny in quarter-final

The draw for this year's Guinness All-Ireland hurling championship will be made on Sunday after the weekend's remaining provincial…

By SEAN MORAN
Tue Jul 06 1999 - 01:00

The draw for this year's Guinness All-Ireland hurling championship will be made on Sunday after the weekend's remaining provincial finals - Connacht, Leinster and Ulster - but may not be completed until after the All-Ireland quarter-finals at the end of the month. In a change this year, the Munster runners-up, Clare, and the Leinster runners-up can meet in the quarter-final.

However, the guiding principle of the draw remains that teams from the same province will not meet at the semi-final stage.

In the two years since the championship first admitted the beaten finalists from Leinster and Munster, the All-Ireland finals have been on both occasions a re-run of a provincial final - Clare-Tipperary in 1997 and Offaly-Kilkenny last year.

It is possible for the same to happen this summer, but the draw is a more tortuous affair. Four teams will go into the draw: Clare (defeated Munster finalists), Galway or Roscommon (Connacht champions), Kilkenny or Offaly (defeated Leinster finalists) and Antrim or Derry (Ulster champions).

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This year the quarter-final draw will be open whereas in the past two years it has seeded the runners-up in Leinster and Munster. If the draw keeps them apart, the Leinster runners-up or whomever they play will face Munster champions Cork in the semi-final and Clare or their opponents will play the Leinster champions Offaly or Kilkenny.

Should the Leinster runners-up be drawn against Clare, the semi-final draw will have to wait until the night of the quarter-finals. If Clare were to win a quarter-final against Kilkenny or Offaly, they would go on to play the Leinster champions (Kilkenny or Offaly). And whoever won the quarterfinal between the Connacht and Ulster champions would face Cork.

If, however, the Leinster runners-up were to win their quarter-final against Clare, they would play Cork and the winners of the other quarter-final would take on the Leinster champions.

Quarter-finals (July 25th - Draw to be made next Sunday) between Clare, Kilkenny/Offaly, Antrim/Derry and Roscommon/Galway.

Semi-finals (August 8th and 15th - Draw either on Sunday July 11th or July 25th). Cork v Kilkenny/Offaly/Antrim/Derry/Roscommon/Galway; Leinster champions v Clare/Antrim/Derry/ Roscommon/Galway.