The Dr. Harty Cup is an annual inter-schools hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It has been contested every year, except on three occasions, since 1918. As the pinnacle of inter-schools hurling competition in the province of Munster, the winning of a Harty Cup medal is viewed by some players as more important than an All-Ireland medal.[1][2][3][4][5]
The final, usually held in February, serves as the culmination of a round-robin group stage and knockout series of games played between October and February. Eligible players must be under the age of 19.[6]
The Dr. Harty Cup is an integral part of the wider All-Ireland PPS Championship. The winners and runners-up of the Dr Harty Cup final, like their counterparts in the Connacht and Leinster Championships, advance to the All-Ireland quarter-finals or semi-finals.
21 teams currently participate in the Dr Harty Cup. The title has been won at least once by 20 different schools, 12 of which have won the title more than once. St Flannan's College are the all-time title record-holders at 22 times.
Archbishop John Harty donated the cup which would bear his name.
Since 1900 a number of unsuccessful attempts were made to organise Gaelic games in secondary schools in Munster. A motion put forward by E. D. Ryan at the Tipperary County Board convention in December 1916 called on secondary schools in the county to give Gaelic games a foremost place. He also suggested that a deputation visit the principals of various colleges to get an explanation from them as to why they "wholly supported the games of snobocracy". A Munster schools' and colleges' meeting on 2 June 1917 agreed to the establishment of a provincial hurling competition. The upper age limit for the competition was set at 19. J. M. Harty, Archbishop of Cashel and Emly, donated a cup for the competition. At a further meeting in September 1917 it was agreed to reduce the age limit to 18.[8]
The draw for the inaugural Harty Cup was made in January 1918, with Rockwell College becoming the first champions after a 5–05 to 3–01 defeat of Christian Brothers College in the final.[9][10] Rockwell College went on to claim five titles up to 1931 before later concentrating on rugby union, while fellow rugby school St Munchin's College also won a Harty Cup title in 1922. Limerick CBS dominated the competition during the 1920s and became the first team to win three titles in-a-row.
St Flannan's College are the all-time record holders.
St Flannan's won another four Harty Cup titles in the 1950s, however, Thurles CBS came in second with three titles.[16]St Colman's College, Abbey CBS and Mount Sion CBS, featuring Martin Óg Morrissey and Frankie Walsh, all won first-time titles during the same period.[17][18] The 1960s began with the North Monastery winning consecutive titles, before Rice College claimed their only title after a defeat of St Flannan's College in an all-Ennis final in 1962.[19] They were beaten by first-time champions St Finbarr's College a year later, however, Limerick CBS with Éamonn Cregan and Éamonn Grimes became the third team to win four consecutive Harty Cup titles.[20][21] Limerick's attempt at winning a record fifth successive Harty Cup ended with the success of the first-time champions Coláiste Chríost Rí in 1968.[22] This win ushered in eight successive victories for Cork schools, with a Christy Ring-trained St Finbarr's College leading the way by winning five Harty Cup titles in six seasons between 1969 and 1974.[23] The competition was played with 13 players-a-side during this period, however, this experiment was later abandoned.[24]
The North Monastery began the 1980s with back-to-back Harty Cup titles, with a team that featured Teddy McCarthy, Tomás Mulcahy and Tony O'Sullivan.[25] They won four titles in all during the decade, while St Flannan's College also won four titles.[26]Midelton CBS became first-time champions in 1988.[27] St Flannan's College continued to dominate the competition by winning four Harty Cup titles during the 1990s. Limerick CBS the North Monastery and a Donal Óg Cusack-captained Midleton CBS also claimed Harty Cup victories.[28]
St Colman's College.
The turn of the century saw St Flannan's College and St Colman's College dominate the Harty Cup. They each won five titles between 1996 and 2005.[29] Their hegemony was brought to an end by Midleton CBS in 2006, a victory which began a period of decline for the Cork-based schools and some of the other traditional powers.[30][31]De La Salle College became the first Waterford-based team to win the Harty Cup in over 50 years when they claimed back-to-back titles in 2007 and 2008.[32] Thurles CBS followed this up by bridging a 53-year gap when they claimed the Harty Cup in 2009.[33] The following decade belonged to Limerick-based Ardscoil Rís, who won five Harty Cup titles between 2010 and 2018, with teams that featured Shane Dowling, Declan Hannon and Cian Lynch.[34] By that stage, vocational schools were permitted to field teams in the competition after the merging of the vocational schools' and colleges' championships in 2013. St Joseph's Secondary School (2022) and Cashel Community School (2023) became the most recent first-time champions.
Current format
Participating teams
The following teams participated in the 2023-24 championship:
The championship begins with a group stage of 21 teams, divided into six groups. Three groups contain four teams and three groups contain three teams. Each team meets the others in the group once in a round-robin format. The first-placed and second-placed teams from each group progress to the knockout stage. For this stage, the winning team from one group plays against the runners-up from another group.
Qualification for the All-Ireland Championship
As of 2005, the winners and runners up of the Dr Harty Cup qualify for the All-Ireland Colleges Championship.[35] The runners-up qualify for the quarter-finals, while on some occasions the champions receive a bye to the semi-final stage, however, this is done in rotation with the Connacht and Leinster champions.
Trophy and medals
The winning team is presented with the Dr Harty Cup, which is shaped like a traditional mether drinking vessel, similar in design to the Liam MacCarthy Cup. It was commissioned to honour John Harty (1867–1946), who was the Archbishop of Cashel and Emly for over 30 years until his death in 1946.[36][37]
Traditionally, the victory presentation takes place at a special rostrum in the main grandstand of the stadium. The winning captain accepts the cup on behalf of his team before giving a short speech. Individual members of the winning team then have an opportunity to come to the rostrum to lift the cup, which is held by the winning team until the following year's final. In accordance with GAA rules, a set of gold medals is awarded to the championship winners.
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