Previous winners:
2014 Kildare
2013 Down
2012 London
2011 Kerry

Round 1 - Saturday May 2nd, 2015
Kerry v Down
Derry v Mayo
London v Kildare
Meath v Wicklow

Saturday will see the last 4 winners of the competition taking on each other. Last year's winners Kildare and relegated from the McCarthy level London will be the teams to beat.

Wicklow contested back to back finals in '11 and '12. Derry have had a good league. Meath are consistently making semi-finals at Ring level. Mayo were very strong in last year's competition. The 2015 battle will be intense. All 8 teams have realistic final ambitions.

legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 7824 - 26/04/2015 22:01:30    1717765

Hard to look past Kerry after their League efforts. In saying that any team could beat the other on the day so will be an interesting few weeks

chriscart580 (Meath) - Posts: 376 - 27/04/2015 09:48:21    1717795

Kerry should be going for their 5th Ring title in-a-row based on league form. Championship is a different beast. The last 3 years have shown that. It is time for Kerry to deliver at this level.

legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 7824 - 27/04/2015 10:21:21    1717812

Im going for 4 home wins

DoireCityFC (Derry) - Posts: 1580 - 27/04/2015 11:22:14    1717861

Kerry v Down winKerry
Derry v Mayo win Derry
London v Kildare win Kildare
Meath v Wicklow win Wicklow

"Derry most improved this year" from Carlow mng
Kerry in Div1b nuff said.

Kerry's to lose

Rambo (None) - Posts: 109 - 27/04/2015 14:31:44    1718024

Well we did lose it, threw two finals away against Down in 2013 and Kildare last year. hopefully the memory of that will drive Kerry on to winning it back this summer!

TheHermit (Kerry) - Posts: 6354 - 27/04/2015 14:42:17    1718033

If Kerry get through, do they play in the Leinster championship?

mayo_hurler (Mayo) - Posts: 113 - 27/04/2015 15:20:45    1718050

If Kerry get through, do they play in the Leinster championship?


Not very confident of your own chances then :)

DoireCityFC (Derry) - Posts: 1580 - 27/04/2015 15:32:35    1718055

Kerry will enter the qualifier group. I always thought the plan was Kerry would enter Munster if they finish top 2 in the group. Seems to be Leinster only. The could have a provisional draw. Should Kerry not make the top 2, their opponent would get a bye.

legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 7824 - 27/04/2015 16:54:56    1718107

All those teams are capable of beating each other on a given day but Kerry & Kildare will probably end up in the final again. Mayo haven't much chance without Keith Higgins. Down have gone backwards since they won it in 2013. I'd imagine London will be decent having played McCarthy Cup last year. Hard to know with Derry, Meath & Wicklow. They're all good but inconsistent. It's often hard to keep momentum going between the end of the league & the start of the championship so it's hard to know really.

keeper7 (Longford) - Posts: 4088 - 27/04/2015 19:56:29    1718189

Yeah, when you look at the teams involved, and how the winners from the last 4 years have been a different one of these teams, it shows the Christy Ring is the most competitive inter-county competition out there. It'll be interesting to see how league form carries into the championship. Kerry are obviously coming into this on the crest of a wave, Derry and Kildare will also have momentum after decent league's. I'd have Kerry v Down as the pick of the first round matches.
Not to sound like a broken record, but its a shame the Christy Ring is usually over by the time people are aware of it. Would love to have seen the Kerry/Down game as a double header with the league final.

Marlon_JD (Tipperary) - Posts: 1823 - 27/04/2015 21:16:17    1718229

Players of lower tier counties aren't interested in being a curtain raiser. They don't need that gimmick. What the best lower tier counties need is at least one big game. In fairness, if lower tier counties have their houses in order, their hurling club action should benefit from having the summer months free.

I'm telling you, a qualifier round 1 of provincial quarter-final losers and the next 4 teams in the pecking order would be a good fit. If it is a repeat of last year's Ring final, Kildare could gain automatic promotion. Kildare could get a qualifier game against Dublin. Kerry could get a qualifier game against Limerick. A one off game in such a scenario would be of benefit. The lower tier counties have to take on the top tier counties at some stage. Having performed at their level, they can just give it ago. At worst, they'll be remaining at their level.

legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 7824 - 27/04/2015 21:50:33    1718250

DoireCityFC
County: Derry
Posts: 74

1718055
If Kerry get through, do they play in the Leinster championship?


Not very confident of your own chances then :)

Can't see Mayo going beyond the semis tbh, we had a poor league run this year and I don't think the Championship will be much better for us... but you never know ;)

mayo_hurler (Mayo) - Posts: 113 - 28/04/2015 11:02:32    1718359

This is the most unpredictable hurling competition out there and one that the GAA should promote more as the standard is rising all the time. Im going to give the nod to Kerry this year based on past let downs and current form. We would love to get to a final, but we will need to be in top gear every game. Looking forward to it. Doire Abú

christy sting (Derry) - Posts: 262 - 28/04/2015 11:42:23    1718392

just to echo what most have said here....a very good (competitive) competition with a very high standard.
most teams can beat another on any given day.
with the competition being run off over such a short space of time, momentum is huge.
kildare got it last year (after a shaky start) and were brilliant in croker v kerry.
lets hope for a similar result this time.

Dr.Watson (Kildare) - Posts: 208 - 29/04/2015 15:47:29    1718976

Round 1 - Saturday May 2nd, 2015
Kerry v Down Kerry by 6
Derry v Mayo Derry by 10
London v Kildare London by 1
Meath v Wicklow Wicklow by 3

London v Kildare the tie of the round

wicklow88 (Wicklow) - Posts: 126 - 29/04/2015 16:04:47    1718983

Have to say I'm disappointed that Keith Higgins isn't playing for Mayo. Footballers not out until mid June and Hurlers will be finished by then.

If that isn't to manage what chance has any other dual player?

tirawleybaron (Mayo) - Posts: 1105 - 29/04/2015 16:26:05    1719005

Who is stopping him?

m_the_d (None) - Posts: 1099 - 29/04/2015 16:32:55    1719010

Don't know. He is the football team captain this year, but he hurled whenever he could under Horan.

tirawleybaron (Mayo) - Posts: 1105 - 29/04/2015 16:54:51    1719018

There was an issue with him not being allowed to play a Ring Cup match last year too.

keeper7 (Longford) - Posts: 4088 - 29/04/2015 17:18:00    1719024