League quarter-finals set for St Patrick’s weekend

For the second year in a row, Allianz Division 1 hurling quarter-finals will take place on the St Patrick’s weekend due to postponed matches.

Three of the four quarter-finals as well as the Division 1A relegation play-off, which takes place merely to decide finishing positions, are down for decision on the weekend of March 16 and 17.

It is the intention of GAA president John Horan that the Division 1 semi-finals be played on St Patrick’s Day next year to replace the All-Ireland senior club finals in Croke Park — their original date for this year was March 16. However, there will be little wiggle room to ensure they take place on March 17, 2020 as five rounds and quarter-finals must be played to get to that stage and this is the second time in 12 months that the GAA have had to extend the schedule because of bad weather.

Last year, the Offaly-Kilkenny and Limerick-Clare quarter-finals were refixed for St Patrick’s Bank Holiday Monday while the Wexford-Galway and Dublin-Tipperary matches went ahead the following weekend.

The Division 1 semi-finals are set for March 23/24, the same weekend as the final round of the Allianz Football Leagues, while the final is pencilled in for March 30/31 when the four divisional football finals take place.

The Cork-Tipperary and Wexford-Kilkenny Division 1A affairs in Páirc Uí Rinn and Innovate Wexford Park, plus the Division 1B clash between Waterford and Galway in Walsh Park all go ahead at 2pm this Sunday. Limerick and Laois, whose quarter-final has already been confirmed, go head to head in O’Moore Park this Saturday at 7pm after Laois won the toss for home advantage.

In their statement yesterday, the Central Competitions Control Committee insisted their main aim “when considering these rearrangements was to minimise disruption to the scheduling of club games in April and May”.

However, the confirmation of the rearranged dates may pose a difficulty for Waterford who have a club championship round organised for the same weekend as the Division 1 final at the end of the month.

Limerick’s draw with Clare in Division 1B and two of the three Division 1B games being played on Sunday makes the quarter-final/Division 1A relegation play-off permutations slightly clearer.

For Clare not to make the quarter-finals, Cork would have to beat Tipperary and Wexford and Kilkenny draw. In that event, they would lose out on score difference.

A win for Cork sends them into the last-eight; Tipperary’s outside quarter-final hopes rest on beating Cork and a team winning in Wexford Park. Victory for either Wexford or Kilkenny would be good enough to see them into the quarters and a draw may even suffice providing Cork don’t win in Páirc Uí Rinn.

Waterford and Galway are into the quarter-finals but the best the Déise can hope for is second as they lost to Dublin last Sunday week and would finish behind them on head-to-head criteria. A win or draw in Walsh Park gives Galway top spot in Division 1B.

Allianz Hurling League Saturday: Division 1 quarter-final: Laois v Limerick O’Moore Park, 7pm, (TG4 live).

Sunday: Division 1A (re-fixtures): Cork v Tipperary, Páirc Uí Rinn, 2pm, (TG4 live); Wexford v Kilkenny, Innovate Wexford Park, 2pm;

Division 1B: Waterford v Galway, Walsh Park, 2pm, (TG4 deferred);

Relegation play-off: Offaly v Carlow, Tullamore, 2pm;

Division 2A final: Westmeath v Kerry, Cusack Park, Ennis, 2pm;

Round 2 re-fixture: London v Mayo, McGovern Park, Ruislip, 1pm;

Division 2B final: Derry v Wicklow, Páirc Grattan, Inniskeen , 2pm;

Division 3A final: Armagh v Roscommon, TBC;

Division 3B final: Sligo v Longford, Bekan, 2.30pm.