All Ireland Minor Hurling Semi Final
The LIT Gaelic Grounds was the focus of attention last Sunday afternoon as our Minor hurlers took on Galway for a place in this years Electric Ireland Minor hurling championship All Ireland final. A large Tipperary crowd was in attendance to witness what can only be described as a titanic battle between two very evenly matched sides. This game had everything and was played at a blistering pace from start to finish, producing a total of 6 goals and 44 points. Having trailed by a point at the break, Tipperary came out fighting in the second half and surged into a 6 point lead, however Galway did not give up and as the game entered injury time the tribesmen were ahead by a single point but Tipperary kept their focus to score 1-02 in the final minutes to book their place against Offaly in the final on a full time score of Tipperary 3-24, Galway 3-20.
The final has now been fixed for UPMC Nowlan Park on Sunday July 3rd at 1.30pm and it is certain to attract a bumper crowd from both counties. Tipperary GAA are asking as many supporters as possible to make a special effort to get to the game and get behind our team, we want to turn Nowlan Park blue and gold on July 3rd and it is hoped that every club in the county will book a bus and bring their juvenile players to the game. Tipperary GAA sponsor Fiserv are fully behind the call to turn Nowlan Park blue and gold and have kindly offered to pay for one lucky clubs bus to the game. All clubs have now received full details of the competition and we ask that all entry forms be returned as soon as possible so as to be included in the draw. Tickets for the game are now available via the following link https://am.ticketmaster.com/gaa/minorhurlingai or in selected Centra and SuperValu stores across the county.
All Ireland Senior Hurling Quarter Finals
FBD Semple Stadium was a hive of activity last Saturday afternoon for the All Ireland senior hurling Quarter Finals. With supporters from Wexford, Clare, Galway and Cork the venue was a sea of colour in the stands and on the terraces, the venue itself was in pristine condition with the now famous playing surface looking immaculate. There were also some very interested spectators in attendance including Hollywood actor Bill Murray who said that he was delighted to be in Thurles to watch our national sport. Well done to all concerned with the staging of the game and we now look forward to many more top class games in the venue as we head in to our own county championship season in the coming weeks.
FBD Insurance County Leagues
Last weekend saw the staging of all three finals in the FBD county football leagues, on Saturday evening in Boherlahan Clonmel Commercials needed extra time to overcome JK Brackens in the Division 1 final on a score of 1-13 to 2-08. On Sunday in Sean Treacy Park the Division 2 final between Galtee Rovers and Golden Kilfeacle proved to be another very entertaining and hard fought game that resulted in the narrowest of wins for Galtee Rovers 1-08 to 1-07. The final game of the weekend was between Fethard and Killenaule in Monroe and it was Killenaule who claimed the Division 3 title with a well deserved 3-13 to 0-11 win. Well done to all the teams who participated in both the football and hurling leagues over the last number of months, it is fair to say that this years competitions have been very competitive and I am sure very beneficial to all who entered them. Thanks also to league sponsors FBD who continue to show great support to our club competitions.
Divisional Championships
The coming weekend will see championship action in both hurling and football across all four Divisions with some very attractive games set to take place. The headline games in West Tipperary are in the senior football championship on Saturday. In Bansha, Rockwell Rovers play Aherlow while in Cappawhite Eire Óg Annacarty Donohill will face Arravale Rovers. Both games throw in at 7.30pm. In the Intermediate football championship. Golden Kilfeacle play Cashel King Cormacs on Friday evening at 7.30pm in Cashel, while on Sunday at 12pm Dundrum will be the venue for the clash of Galtee Rovers and Clonoulty Rossmore. In North Tipperary there are games in the Intermediate, Premier Intermediate ans Senior hurling championships. The action commences in Puckane on Friday 
evening where Ballinahinch and Borrisokane will meet in the Intermediate championship at 7.30pm, the Premier Intermediate championship takes centre stake on Saturday with three games taking place. Cloughjordan will play host to a double header starting at 5pm with the clash of Kiladangan and Silvermines at 5pm and then at 7pm Newport and Roscrea will lock horns. Also at 7pm in Toomevara, Ballina and Portroe will meet in their Quarter Final clash. On Sunday the focus will be on the Senior hurling championship with a double header taking place in Nenagh. At 2pm Borris-Ileigh and Toomevara will renew their rivalry and then at 4pm Kiladangan and Kilruane MacDonaghs will take to the field. The headline games in the Mid Division are in the senior hurling championship with three games taking place on Saturday evening. The action throws in at 5pm in Templemore with the clash of Thurles Sarsfields and Upperchurch-Drombane, there are two games taking place at 7pm, in Boherlahan, Holycross-Ballycahill and Moycarkey Borris play their Quarter Final, while in Templetuohy, Loughmore-Castleiney and Drom & Inch will do battle. Tickets for all the games are now available to purchase via the ticket section of the Tipperary GAA website .
Bord Gáis Energy’s ‘State of Play’ campaign launched
Over three quarters (78%) of people want to see more sport stars supporting the LGBQTI+ community, and 84% believe sport can play an important role in promoting a positive discussion around inclusivity. That’s according to new research from Bord Gáis Energy, proud sponsors of the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship. The research was carried out to launch ‘State of Play’, a new campaign from Bord Gáis Energy which aims to highlight the importance of inclusivity and allyship in team sports.
As part of the campaign, Bord Gáis Energy has teamed up with hurling stars Joe Canning and Gearóid Hegarty as well as activist Rory O’Neill, aka Panti Bliss to talk about inclusivity and the ways in which team sports can be made a welcoming place for everyone. A lack of representation of the LGBTQI+ community at elite level (38%), lack of role models (35%) and concerns about feeling excluded (33%) are cited as key barriers to increasing participation by the LGBTQI+ community in team sports.
To increase participation, 27% want to see more visibility of LGBTQI+ players at elite level and 22% want to see clubs actively demonstrating a zero-tolerance policy for intolerance or discrimination. The GAA is currently working with BeLonG To, Ireland’s LGBTQI+ youth organisation, to develop an online awareness module for GAA clubs and members designed to help remove barriers to sports participation for members of LGBTQI+ community. The Bord Gáis Energy ‘State of Play’ research follows on from a recent Gaelic Players Association (GPA) survey where half of players said they felt there would be prejudice against players if they came out. This is despite 99% of players surveyed saying they would support a teammate coming out.
To help promote allyship and inclusivity in team sports, Bord Gáis Energy has created 32 limited edition GAA County Pride t-shirts. The t-shirts are on sale from today at Hairy Baby for €20 and all proceeds will go to Focus Ireland* to support young adults from the LGBTQI+ community who are experiencing homelessness. The aim of these t-shirts is to encourage support for the LGBTQI+ community and showcase that the GAA is a place for everyone.
Allianz and Cumann na mBunscol launch GAA initiative to support Ukrainian pupils
Twenty-six schools across the country have joined an initiative organised between Allianz and Cumann na mBunscol, that will support Ukrainian schoolchildren participate in local Gaelic game activities through their schools. The initiative sees Allianz provide these schools with 500 footballs, 200 hurleys and 200 sliothars to help Ukrainian refugee schoolchildren fall in love with our national games. In total, the twenty-six participating schools have taken in 383 Ukrainian schoolchildren between them.
The sports equipment was successfully delivered to each of the twenty-six schools across the country last week, in advance of Allianz Cumann na mBunscol Week. The initiative welcomes schools from 15 counties across the four main provinces of Ireland. It is envisaged through the campaign these schools will play a key role in helping Ukrainian schoolchildren integrate into their local communities through the national sport.
These schools are playing such an important role in welcoming Ukrainian schoolchildren into our communities. By joining these local GAA activities, we hope the Ukrainian children feel welcome in our communities and learn the skills they need to enjoy our national games. Ukrainian children have featured in Cumann na mBunscol activities already this school term, thus making new friends and integrating more easily in their new surroundings.
Allianz Cumann na mBunscol Week started in June 2020, with a focus on supporting Gaelic games and related activities in schools when it was not possible for teams to take to the field at the time. This year, the week has engaged with approximately 2,000 schools who are joining in local GAA activities and competitions across the country. The Allianz Cumann na mBunscol schools’ hurling finals took place last week in Croke Park on June 7th and 8th.
Tipperary GAA Scene
If there is anything you feel should feature in this column going forward, please feel free to forward it to pro.tipperary@gaa.ie
By Jonathan Cullen Thu 23rd Jun
