All-Ireland hurling quarter-finals could be split across two days

The URC final could be played on June 19 at Croke Park, if Leinster qualify and have home advantage

The All-Ireland SHC quarter-finals, in which Offaly will feature, are scheduled for the weekend of June 20/21. Pic ©INPHO/Laszlo Geczo

The All-Ireland senior hurling quarter-finals could be played as two standalone games on different days.

No discussion about the games returning to a Sunday billing on June 21 was had at Central Council meeting on Saturday.

The GAA are prepared to adopt a wait-and-see approach before next weekend’s Leinster and Munster SHC finals and one quarter-final might yet be played on Saturday, June 20 and the other the following day.

A Cork-Offaly All-Ireland quarter-final would draw a huge crowd as would a Clare-Galway clash. The last separate quarter-finals on different days took place in 2018 when Clare and Wexford met in Páirc Uí Chaoimh and the day after Limerick and Kilkenny faced off in Thurles.

Last year’s quarter-finals were also played at two venues but on the same Saturday, while the previous double-header was in FBD Semple Stadium in 2024.

There is also the prospect of the URC rugby final being arranged for Croke Park on Friday, June 19, a day earlier than scheduled.

The GAA were reluctant to make available the stadium on June 20 as their own games are scheduled for Croke Park that weekend. The Tailteann Cup semi-finals at GAA HQ would be expected to switch to Saturday if the hurling quarter-finals were organised on a Sunday for the first time since 2019. The venue could also host one or two All-Ireland SFC Round 3 games.

Should they reach the decider, Leinster would have home advantage in the URC final providing the Glasgow Warriors don’t qualify for it. However, the Aviva Stadium is unavailable due to Metallica concerts and there would appear to be no suitable alternative.

Otherwise, Central Council was presented with a report that examined aligning the minor All-Ireland finals with the senior. While it recommended keeping “an open attitude to the staging of curtain-raisers before finals”, it stated it was not currently feasible for the minor deciders to be played as the senior undercards.

Friday, November 20 was agreed as the date for return to training for inter-county players before the 2027 season.