All-Ireland champions Offaly will face Galway in the first round of the 1999 Church and General Hurling League, which has scheduled two Saturday dates for fixtures in a bid to streamline the programme.

The reigning League champions Cork host Kilkenny when the season begins on February 21st while Waterford, beaten in last year's final, are at home to Down.

The weekends of March 27th and April 10th have been designated as weekends given to Saturday hurling. Counties due to play each other on those dates have the option of switching their match to Sunday by mutual agreement but it is anticipated that the majority of them will opt to fulfil the fixture as it stands.

"I think it's a terrific idea, we have played a number of Oireachtas matches on a Saturday, it worked really well and it will give players the opportunity to use Sunday as a rest day, to spend with families or even watch other sports", offered Cork manager Jimmy Barry Murphy.

"I think it will be welcomed by the public also. For instance, the All-Ireland semi-final replay between Clare and Offaly was organised for a Saturday and it was a tremendous event, so I feel teams will in general be only too glad to play on the designated Saturdays."

Barry-Murphy feels the straight League format is of tremendous value to counties in terms of preparing for the Championship and believes that it also lends weight to the competition in its own right.

"Last year, we put a lot into the League and we were delighted to win it. You have to regard it as one of just two national titles available to you. The fact that there is no break in the season is a great advantage, it enables a side to measure its progression and helps maintain public interest. I know from talking to some AIL rugby players that they felt the break in their competition was a hindrance to them."

While Barry-Murphy is looking forward to the resumption of hurling, he thinks that Cork will not be as geared towards the League as they were last year.

"Being honest, probably not. We succeeded in our aim to win last year and perhaps the play-offs took a little bit of the edge from us when we entered the Munster Championship," he said.

The regular season is being run over seven rounds, after which the top two sides from Divisions 1A and Divisions 1B will qualify for the semi-finals.