It was the first time that the Cats were beaten in the Championship on home soil since 1949.

Diarmuid Connolly made a return to competitive action when coming on as a second-half substitute for St Vincent’s in their Dublin Adult Hurling League Division 1 encounter against Craobh Chiaráin at Páirc Naomh Uinsionn last night.

The Leinster Council are expecting a crowd in excess of 50,000 for this weekend’s provincial hurling decider between Galway and Wexford.

Galway captain David Collins is a doubt for Sunday’s Leinster SHC final with Kilkenny.

ALL-IRELAND SHC QUARTER-FINAL:

Sooner or later Limerick hurling will stop breaking mirrors, walking under ladders or whatever superstition it is they seem to keep doing.

Dublin hurling sharpshooter Paul Ryan has downplayed any talk of a potential All-Ireland senior double for the capital, insisting it would be "stupid" to look beyond both teams' next matches.

Galway and Dublin provide a novel pairing in tomorrow’s Leinster SHC final, a pairing few would have foreseen at the start of this season.

Dublin manager Anthony Daly has unsurprisingly named an unchanged team for Sunday's Leinster SHC final against defending champions Galway at Croke Park (throw-in 4pm).

Galway 2-17 Laois 1-13

Westmeath 2-13 Antrim 3-18

All-Ireland SHC final rivals Kilkenny and Galway could meet again in next year's Leinster SHC final, after the draws for the provincial Senior Hurling Championships were made tonight.

Mickey Harte has never been slow to harvest information, lessons and warnings from other sports, and the Tyrone manager absorbed another timely nugget ahead of Saturday’s visit to Roscommon.

Bookmaking firms were last night celebrating Galway’s Leinster SHC final victory over Kilkenny.

There is one enforced change to the Kilkenny team to face Galway in tomorrow's Leinster SHC final, with Noel Hickey replacing the injured JJ Delaney in defence.

David Collins has recovered from injury to take his place in the Galway team for tomorrow's Leinster SHC final against Kilkenny.

Team captain Eoin Larkin is Kilkenny's main injury concern ahead of their Leinster SHC final clash with Galway on Sunday.

Kilkenny 2-21 Dublin 0-9

PETER CANAVAN has promised all Fermanagh players will be given a fair shout of making his 2012 panel.

Joey Boland will make his first appearance of the summer for Dublin in tomorrow's Leinster SHC final against Kilkenny at Croke Park (throw-in 4pm).

Tommy Walsh will start for Kilkenny when they battle it out with Dublin in tomorrow's Leinster SHC final at Croke Park (throw-in 4pm).

THE draw for the third phase of hurling qualifiers will be held tomorrow following the Leinster SHC final on TV3.

IMITATION, it’s said, is the sincerest form of flattery and on Sunday old Kilkenny meets new Kilkenny in the Leinster SHC final. Yes, it’s the Cats versus the Dubs, but when the high-profile Kilkenny players take up their positions, they’ll be looking at a mirror image of themselves.

OWNERS of a Dublin city nightspot were left with egg on their faces yesterday aftr they were forced to apologise for promoting a celebration reception for the Dublin hurlers after their Leinster final on Sunday.

Kilkenny have been boosted by the return to training of Tommy Walsh ahead of Sunday week's Leinster SHC final against Dublin.

Wexford 1-15 Kilkenny 1-26

It’ll be a season of tight margins on and off the pitch — but if these pairings materialise, the GAA will be singing all the way to the bank manager

PROVINCIAL chiefs will be praying for a rapid improvement in the weather after the weekend’s cold snap created fixtures chaos in Leinster and Ulster.

WATERFORD’S Michael Wadding last night expressed delight after his appointment as referee for the All-Ireland SHC final between Kilkenny and Tipperary on September 5.

Sligo forward David Kelly and Galway attacker Damien Hayes have been named as the Opel GPA Players of the Month for June in football and hurling respectively.

With the Bob O'Keeffe Cup resting in Kilkenny hands for the 12th time in 13 years, there is no denying that the Cats are a cut above the rest in the eastern province.

John McIntyre feels his Galway team have what it takes to bounce back from yesterday's Leinster SHC final collapse and launch a concerted challenge for All-Ireland honours.

Eoin Larkin will line out at left half-forward for defending champions Kilkenny in tomorrow afternoon's Leinster SHC final against Galway at Croke Park (throw-in 4pm).

RTÉ YESTERDAY launched their most ambitious broadcast plans for the GAA Championships.

Dublin Senior hurler Alan McCrabbe is targeting an appearance in next Spring's Allianz National Hurling League final as a realistic opportunity for his side.

The Dublin County Board has confirmed that Anthony Daly has agreed a one-year extension to his tenure as the capital's senior hurling manager.

KILKENNY have made two changes for tonight’s Leinster U21HC decider at Parnell Park.

IF there is one man who can identify with Diarmuid O’Sullivan’s decision this year to pull the plug on his Cork inter-county career, it’s Dublin’s Stephen Hiney.

Dublin’s hurlers are sweating on the fitness of five of their players ahead of their Leinster SHC final clash with Kilkenny next month.

Dublin 0-18 Wexford 1-13

Kilkenny manager Brian Cody has made three changes to his team for tomorrow's Leinster SHC final against Wexford (Croke Park, throw-in 4pm) - the Cats' tenth provincial decider in 11 years.

HAD he had a mind to do so, Damien Fitzhenry, the last line of defence for the Wexford hurlers in Sunday’s Leinster SHC final against Kilkenny, could easily have been the first point of attack for the Wexford footballers in their provincial decider against Dublin, two weeks later.