Christy Ring, Nicky Rackard and Lory Meagher Cup players want more recognition, says survey

Hurlers in the Christy Ring, Nicky Rackard and Lory Meagher Cups have called on the GAA for the competitions to be afforded more recognition, according to a GPA survey.

Three-quarters of those players from the three tiers who responded to questions posed by the official players’ body felt the importance bestowed on the competitions by the GAA was quite low, while 70% said their own county boards were as indifferent about them.

Less than half raised issues about the structure of the championship they were playing in, while over 70% regarded the retention of the finals in Croke Park as being “very important”. A strong majority were also in favour of the finals either being televised or streamed live. Interestingly, 60% of players indicated their support for the Rackard and Meagher Cup competitions to be amalgamated.

On behalf of the GPA, former Cork manager Donal O’Grady compiled the report arising from the survey, which also found a large backing for the cups being extended to seven weeks. O’Grady said: “The Ring, Rackard and Meagher Cups are the All-Irelands for the various teams involved. These are the elite hurlers of almost 20 counties and the players give great commitment.

“They see the success of these Cups as being very important for the future of hurling in their areas and they want these competitions to help drive progress and develop the games to the highest standards possible. Live television coverage by TG4 was a big boost for the teams in the finals this year and hopefully it will continue in the years ahead.”

GPA chief executive Dessie Farrell added: “The GPA asked Donal (O’Grady) to carry out research into the three hurling competitions, to talk to the players, to county boards, development officers, Croke Park and members of the media.

“The promotion of the Ring, Rackard and Meagher competitions is an essential component for the development of hurling nationwide and it was very important to listen to what the players had to say.”

O’Grady has also outlined changes to the competitions’ systems where each cup would consist of eight teams. They would each be divided into two groups of four, playing three games, with the Christy Ring Cup finalists entering the Leinster SHC as a reward for the endeavours.