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St Louis played a friendly against us around 1990 at 5th year stage - it was arranged in part through some lads in both schools that knew each other - at that time they were gathering lads up for the game as they had no team entered in any competition - poor enough given their catchment - that said I think they did win an All Ireland hurling title around that time.

St Louis got to an All Ireland B Hurling Final in the late 80s and an All Ireland B Football Final in the mid 1990s. Lost both, unfortunately. In fact, I have a notion that the school that beat them after extra time in hurling last year was the one that beat them in the football final previously.

Couple of interesting results from the schools competitions during March.

St Fergals were beaten by St Fintans from Sutton in Dublin (not a particularly big school) in the Juv C semi final. What's happening with Fergals as they seem to be in trouble with the hurling in the school. They really need to have a look at this.

Your post is answered simply, by saying Mountrath CS. They have taken a lot of what traditionally went to Fergals, and its just a fact of life.

MCS don't contribute to Laois Schools as they play in A competitions to the best of my knowledge at all grades. The schools performances were encouraging in this regard.

Naas is an outlier in Kildare, they have done magnificent work in hurling, read more here http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/naas-nurturing-a-generation-of-hurling-trailblazers-34138486.html

The minor hurling result at the weekend makes me despair and wonder why we bother.

The result against Antrim?

Why would that in particular make you despair?  Laois beat Dublin, Dublin beat Antrim, Antrim beat Laois. That would suggest that there is not a whole lot of difference in standard, albeit I read somewhere that it was Dublin's "B" team.

I see the minors had a big win over Laois on Saturday, any reports on their performance?

No reports but the scorers (per twitter) were Ed McQuillan 3-0, Seann Elliott 0-6, David Kilgore 1-1 and Anton McGrath, Micheal McGreevey and Conor McHugh 0-1 each.

We were beaten by Dublin 2-17 to 0-9 the previous week. Read somewhere that was the Dublin "B" team but whether Dublin streams minors or mixes them up, I'm not sure, as Laois beat Dublin the week before that by 2-13 to 1-13.

Minors now play Westmeath in Leinster Shield Semi Final.

Some hammering today just the 26 points!! Less running more hurling!!

Was at the game. To be honest, some positive signs from an Antrim perspective (I appreciate how that sounds, given the scoreline). The big difference was a.) the goals (and Chrissy had a stomer!) and b.) how clinical KK (who had a very strong team out) were generally. The least mistake was punished by a point. The first half was reasonably competitive and we took some good scores. We also had a goal ruled out for a square ball that was a square ball but there was no need for it to be (if that makes any sense - our man had wandered into the square when waiting for a ball to be crossed in when he could easily have held back and scored just as easily).

Some strong individual performances and everybody kept going and showing for the ball right to the end (which hasn't always been the way with us in games like this).

I think we have to be realistic about where we are in the world right now.

'Sure hindsight is always a wonderful thing'

A real get out of jail free card is that one. Plenty of voices at the time when it was first muted, stating this Ulster Council led Casement redevelopment would not suit Antrims needs but those perspectives were simply  ignored. Dunsilly's design/layout should have had a level of contingency (in terms of how it would be used) built into it IMO.

I repeat again ... who would want to watch a national league game OR a county final in a 30K+ stadium where we'd be lucky to get 3-4 thousand?

Was it not self-evident from the off that the site was always going to be defined and limited by the railway line? In other words, there was/is never any possibility of it being other than a training facility. As such, there was no scope for contingencies such as using it for county and big club games. I presume this "limitation" in the scope of usage is reflected in what was paid  for it back in the day?

So Ballycastle for senior final with minor final as curtain raiser

Where'd you here that?

County website still has a vague date between the 16th - 18th Sept

http://antrim.gaa.ie/fixtures/hurling/minor-a-hurling-championship

It's on the county twitter.

Anyone up for calling the Junior and Intermediate finals?

A few U16 Dev squad players going to Tennents Vital instead of the national tournament this weekend in Tipp.

And no team in the Tony Forristal (under 14) tournament - seems we entered and subsequently withdrew. What's that all about?

Are we going to field in the Under 15 competition?

Saw Sambo's article. Couldn't disagree with the content but also couldn't help be struck by one of the comments underneath which basically asked why are we (Antrim) "always moaning" - just get together a plan and get on with it.

Always struck me as a little demeaning that we constantly look to outsiders to solve our problems. Haven't Croke Park said they would help financially if we were to come up with a realistic plan?

Shane Elliot is as good a shout as any, we need somebody like Alec Emerson in with him. Somebody who knows the game inside and out.

I don't care what anybody says, we have the talent, it's more attitudes and inter club rivalry we need to sort out.

What evidence is there of this talent?  Loughgiel's All Ireland in 2012? Rossa and Creggan winning Intermediate and Junior?

From time to time we can produce a very good club team. That said, coming out of Ulster is a huge advantage for our clubs as we don't have to slog through a competitive championship a la Leinster or Munster before we get to a All Ireland semi final. Even then, we frequently get "surprised" by a Down or Derry team.

When was the last real "statement" result from the senior hurlers? Beating Dublin in 2010?

Apart from beating Wexford in the semi in 2013, our under 21s have never beaten anyone outside Ulster (afaik).

When have our minors ever won a championship game outside of Ulster - when they played in (and got to a final of) a Leinster championship in the 1970s?

Our schools regularly contest B All Ireland finals but there is no prospect of any of them going up to A and surviving at the minute.

Antrim hurling has many issues but (imho) one of the biggest is our over-inflated view of ourselves as a "hurling" county. Hence our attitude that we "should" beat Meath. Why should we presume to beat Meath? I have no idea but I wouldn't be at all surprised if the Meath senior hurling championship has as many clubs as we have in ours and, moreover, a bigger spread of winners than we have had over the last 25 years.

By dint of our potential playing population, we have the prospect (if we got organised) of become competitive but I just don't see this huge pool of talent out there being held back by attitude and inter-club rivalry.

[On the referee's scoring, Antrim and Meath drew.]

On the referee's scoring, Antrim and Meath drew.

At the end of the game?

I'm beginning to doubt that as it doesn't make any sense.

Well, there are two aspects to that:

1.   What did the referee actually "award"; and

2.   How was his recording of what he awarded during the course of the game?

The answer to the first question is he awarded Antrim 1-20 and Meath 2-17. He accepts that this is what he awarded. His report (as I understand it) is that is what he awarded.

The answer to the second question is unknown. Did he fail to record a score that he awarded? Did he record it "on the wrong side" of the ledger? Did he keep a running total or was it just a series of ticks for each score? Did he then presume that the score as set out on the scoreboard matched his ticks until he went back to have another look?

Nobody but the referee or someone who has access to his note book knows that.

I wonder if Hawk-Eye has over-ruled any decisions since that Limerick minors incident a couple of years ago? I'm not arguing with what you're saying AZOffaly but I find it surprising that there aren't more examples of Hawk-Eye correcting the officials. At least none that stick out for me - you would think it would happen slightly more frequently.

Secondly now that the Limerick incident has been brought up, technically Limerick "won" that game (or "won" it in the same sense that Meath and Antrim "drew") yet Limerick never progressed to the final or even sought a replay. I think everyone put it down to the incident happening in the first minute so it's a bit of quandary really - because this happened in the 63rd minute, the game should be replayed? The inconsistency in decision making sometimes is hilarious.

The Limerick situation and the Antrim Meath situation are not the same at all. On the referee's scoring, Limerick lost by a point. On the referee's scoring, Antrim and Meath drew.

In the Limerick game, Limerick claimed a point but the referee did not give it. The manner in which he did not give it was that it went to Hawkeye (which was incorrectly set up) which gave it wide and so no point was "awarded." The referee exercised his judgment (albeit based on an incorrectly set up Hawkeye) and did not award a score. That is the key. "Morally" (or whatever other word you might want to use), it might have been a "score" but "technically" (officially, legally, whatever) it was not.

This is akin to the situation in the famous Louth - Meath game. Again "morally", Joe Sheridan may have not have "scored" in accordance with the rules, but the referee awarded the goal and Meath won.

In the Antrim Meath game, the referee "awarded" the following scores  - 1 - 20 to Antrim and 2 -17 to Meath. He accepts in his report that the foregoing were the scores that he awarded. The match was a draw. There can be no debate that, after 70 minutes, the referee had awarded equal scores to both teams. That he (or the scoreboard operator) may have "thought" for a time that it was 1-20 to 2-18 is irrelevant to the fact that it was a draw.

The Limerick situation is closer to the argument I've seen raised by Meath fans that Meath "should" have had a point in or about 40 minute mark that was waived wide. It may have been a point, it may not, but the referee didn't award it.

To be honest, the argument that the decision to have a replay when the referee's report shows that the game was a draw somehow opens the floodgates to every refereeing decision being subject to challenge is, at best, disingenuous.

Páirc Esler in Newry on Saturday 18 June, with a 7pm throw-in.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2016/0607/793869-christy-ring/

I wasnt that far away then 

You were even closer than you thought - looks like its this Saturday (11th June) at 7pm!

Confusion over the date of the replay is sort of apt in all the circumstances here!

[another 15-20 point defeat]

As an Antrim man i dont want the match replayed, seen the scenes after the game and meant so much to Meath how could they replicate that, or get up for a replay for that matter. Im sure we've all played in games and with 10 mins or so to go asked the score. now at that stage of the game we knew what we had to do to get over the line, Meath knew what they had to do to peg us back. and at that stage they done enough, simple. We threw the game away and couldn't see it out. Also when meath got their last free they took an age to take it just to put it out of play, would this have happened if they thought the game was a draw?

Best scenario is both teams play Liam next year, meath keep the cup and all us Antrim folk can boast we are back among the big boys again and get our wee pat on the head about keeping the game going 'up there' after another 15-20 point defeat. Role on next summer!

Going by what I saw on Saturday this outcome would be a moral victory!

What about the Antrim players, they trained all year too I'm sure. Should a false result be allowed to stand just because observers think that it meant more to Meath? That's a crazy precedent to set. The game must be replayed, if Antrim don't care about the result let them play a b team.

Agree with this.

If Croke Park agree or try to facilitate a replay they would be setting a dangerous precedent although they've replayed similar in the past and at other times not.
You gotta love this association as sometimes they make up the rules as they go along!

I wonder is there much heart in Antrim for replay as I get the impression they can't wait for this year to be over, senior inter-county hurling wise!

If I was an Antrim hurler I'd not be too bothered about a replay as I know when the Down lads who were involved in the game being blown up early in the first ever Christy Ring final didn't really want a replay but were a bit pissed off by the lack of support from the county board at the time.
Antrim CB will ask for a replay, CCC won't give it to them, a bit of a sweetener to the county coffers, a few vouchers for the players, everyone is happy....

If Antrim are awarded a replay then I presume Derry will be awarded a replay for the 1997 Ulster final v Cavan when Cavan were awarded a point for a shot which was clearly several feet wide and the difference at the end was one point. I'm sure several other teams will be looking for replays for injustices.

It's an entirely different situation to the one you describe above. This isn't the ref exercising his judgment incorrectly (awarding a point that was clearly wide, giving a yellow instead of a red card, blowing up 2 minutes early). This is a ref who "gave" the point but, for whatever reason, failing to add the total up correctly. Having awarded the point, the subsequent error made was objective rather than subjective (unless you argue that simple mathematics is subject to a discretion)

Kinda funny though.
I reckon we should forget about it and move on.

I understand that sentiment alright but, on the other hand, if it actually was a draw, the gaa have to do something. Saw something somewhere about ref possibly overruling the umpires who flagged a Meath point "wide". Maybe that's the out everybody "needs".

Let Meath keep it, Antrim were an embarrassment

oh I agree. Best team won hands down. It's just amazing how a final in croke can be scored wrong.

Meath didn't win, the game was a draw. What a shambles.