This race to be crowned 2017 Bord Gáis Energy All-Ireland hurling champions begins in Trim tomorrow night.
Meath entertain Westmeath in the opening fixture of the Leinster U21 HC, with the winners progressing to host Laois next Wednesday night. All four Leinster quarter-finals will be played that same night, May 31st, with Dublin V Kilkenny, Wexford V Offaly and Kildare V Carlow completing the line-up.
There will then be a three-week break ahead of the semi-finals on Wednesday, June 21st.
The Munster championship kicks off the following night, June 22nd, with Limerick hosting Tipperary for the right to entertain Clare in a provincial semi-final on July 12th.
The Leinster championship will be over - the final is slated for July 5th - before a sliothar has been pucked in Ulster, where the semi-finals (Derry V Antrim and Armagh V Down) are due to be played on July 19th.
The All-Ireland semi-finals will take place on August 19th - Galway V Munster and Leinster V Ulster - and the final is scheduled for Saturday, September 9th.
The 2017 Bord Gáis Energy GAA Hurling U-21 All-Ireland Championship was officially launched at an event in Bord Gáis Energy offices in Dublin today. A new line up of ambassadors for this year's competition was also announced.
Sponsors and longstanding supporters of the U21 grade, Bord Gáis Energy introduced a number of fresh faces to their ambassador line up for the 2017 season. Following in the footsteps of previous ambassadors such as Liam Rushe, Richie Hogan and Tony Kelly are Peter Casey (Limerick), Luke Meade (Cork), Patrick Curran (Waterford), Billy McCarthy (Tipperary), Aron Shanaghar (Clare), Shane Barrett (Dublin), Liam Blanchfield (Kilkenny), Aaron Maddock (Wexford), and Thomas Monaghan (Galway). Christy McNaughton was the Antrim representative at today's launch.
These ambassadors will join Bord Gáis Energy's line up of #HurlingToTheCore ambassadors revealed earlier this month; Joe Canning, Conor McDonald and Munster Rugby star Simon Zebo. #HurlingToTheCore celebrates Bord Gáis Energy's belief that hurling is more than a sport or pastime - it is deeply ingrained in Irish history and stitched into our national identity.
Ambassadors play a crucial role in bringing the U-21 Championship to life through #HurlingToTheCore on Bord Gáis Energy's social media channels. Fans will be able to access key match statistics from each U-21 ambassador after games, along with highlights showing the best of the action across Bord Gáis Energy's Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and YouTube throughout the Championship.
TG4 will broadcast eleven games over the course of the 2017 Championship, and fans will once again be able to nominate their Man of the Match via Twitter using the #LaochBGE hashtag during televised matches.
Bord Gáis Energy GAA Hurling
U-21 All-Ireland Championship 2017 Fixtures
2017 Bord Gáis Energy Leinster GAA Hurling U-21 Championship |
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Round |
Date |
Venue |
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Quarter Finals |
|
|
|
1 |
Kildare v Carlow |
31 May 2017 |
Newbridge |
2 |
Wexford v Offaly |
31 May 2017 |
Wexford |
3 |
Prel. winners v Laois |
31 May 2017 |
Meath/Westmeath |
4 |
Dublin v Kilkenny |
31 May 2017 |
Nowlan Park (LIVE TG4) |
Semi Finals |
|
|
|
5 |
Winners 1 v winners 2 |
21 June 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
6 |
Winners 3 v winners 4 |
21 June 2017 |
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Leinster Final |
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|
|
7 |
Winners 5 v winners 6 |
5 July 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
2017 Bord Gáis Energy Munster GAA Hurling U- 21 Championship |
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Round |
Date |
Venue |
|
Quarter Finals |
|
|
|
1 |
Tipperary v Limerick |
22 June 2017 |
Gaelic Grounds Limerick (LIVE TG4) |
Semi Finals |
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2 |
Clare v winner of 1 |
12 July 2017 |
Semple Stadium Thurles or Gaelic Grounds Limerick (LIVE TG4) |
3 |
Waterford v Cork |
13 July 2017 |
Waterford venue (LIVE TG4) |
Munster Final |
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|
|
4 |
Winner of 2 v winner of 3 |
26 July 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
2017 Bord Gáis Energy Ulster GAA Hurling U- 21 Championship |
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Round |
Date |
Venue |
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Semi Finals |
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1 |
Derry v Antrim |
19 July 2017 |
Owenbeg |
2 |
Armagh v Down |
19 July 2017 |
Athletic Grounds |
Ulster Final |
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3 |
Winner 1 v winner 2 |
TBC |
TBC |
Borg Gáis Energy GAA Hurling U-21 All-Ireland Championship |
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Round |
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All Ireland Semi-Finals |
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1 |
Galway v Munster |
19 August 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
2 |
Leinster v Ulster |
19 August 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
All Ireland Finals |
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B Final
|
9 September 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
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Winner 1 v winner 2
|
9 September 2017 |
TBC (LIVE TG4) |
TweetWe're delighted to launch the Bord Gáis Energy @officialgaa Hurling U21 Championship today! Meet our #HurlingToTheCore Ambassadors! pic.twitter.com/w9M6uJXMN7
- BGEGAA (@BGEGAA) May 23, 2017