Hurling 2026

[Capt Pat]

Offaly got a draw against Kilkenny with a last minute 65. Screeney wasn't playing for Offaly.

In the Waterford Cork game. I noticed Austin Gleeson didn't play any part. Was he injured, dropped or why wasn't he playing?

[Genocide Organ]

Am I right in saying that if Offaly can beat Wexford, then KK have to beat Dublin in Parnell to go through?

[imtommygunn]

Leinster definitely very interesting.

You'd assume that Offaly and KK will beat Kildare (who looked to put up a fight of it against Galway).

Dublin have two hard games too there. You wonder is there anything in Wexford.

You're *probably* right but quite a few permutations left in that league I think.

[johnnycool]

All credit to Offaly, Tullamore is a tough place to get the win against them evidently.

It would be easy to say Kilkenny have dropped off hugely and they might well have, at the same credit must go to Offaly for kicking on from a poor Div1A campaign and maybe that is paying off for them.

Offaly finish off with Wexford next, in Tullamore and then away to Kildare. It's not beyond the realms for them to end up with 6 points and that may be enough to get them out of Leinster.

Kilkenny have Kildare up next and whilst Kildare are giving a very good account of themselves it would be the biggest shock in my lifetime for Kildare to come out of Nowlan park with the win (and I was with the Down team who beat Kilkenny in Nowlan park to relegate them to Div 2 in the early 90's).

Dublin's final 2 games will decide their fate and that of those around them.

Dublin probably need a win from one of their last 2 games, Galway up next then a finale with Kilkenny in Parnell Park, which for me is their best chance.

If Dublin win that, and Offaly do pick up 2 wins then the Cats would be gone from the 2026 championship....

Wexford aren't mathematically out of it yet, they need to buck up though, beat Offaly and hope Galway are already through to the final by the time of the last game.

Rossiter is under a bit of pressure to find something from this group, young and all that they are.

[Bord na Mona man]

A great draw for Offaly, because it would have been a tragedy to lose.
And serious kudos to Eoghan Cahill. The last 65 and the free before that were tricky. For Kilkenny TJ missed 4 frees and Kenny missed 2 after him. It wasn't handy conditions for freetakers.

For the last 65, the Offaly players immediately appealed it and kicked up a proper fuss so the crowd knew something was up. It then made it difficult for Johnny Murphy to ignore the appeals.
If they'd held their whisht, it was a defeat.

[Bord na Mona man]

Hoping Charlie recovers well from this.

[Cyril Farrell fan]

Permutations: Kilkenny suddenly in danger of Leinster exit

Kilkenny not out of woods: Cian Kenny disappears down the tunnel in Tullamore
Conor Neville   

The previously predictable Leinster Hurling Championship has taken a complicated turn in the wake of Offaly's landmark draw against Kilkenny, a result which could have major implications for the final two rounds.

Offaly's rapid improvement and Kilkenny's greater-than-usual vulnerability have been the unexpected elements in this campaign.

They have given rise to a hitherto unthinkable possibility - that the Cats may fail to escape the Leinster championship for the first time in the round-robin era.

Kilkenny have won six provincial titles on the trot and have never failed to reach the Leinster final since the current format was instituted. They were beaten by Galway in a replay, played in Thurles, in the inaugural round-robin season in 2018 and lost to Wexford in the Croker decider the following year.

However, they have won the four subsequent Leinster titles played under this system, between 2022 and 2025.

Eoghan Cahill's contentious last-minute '65 to level the game in Tullamore has increased the stakes drastically for what could yet be a do-or-die elimination game between Dublin and Kilkenny in Parnell Park.

Should Offaly win their two remaining games, at home to Wexford and then away to Kildare, then Kilkenny will need a result away to Dublin on the last weekend or else exit the championship.

Offaly's fate isn't quite in their own hands - if Dublin beat Galway and then lose to Kilkenny, both them and the Cats will finish on seven points - but a win over a faltering Wexford will put them in a strong position entering the final round of games.

If Offaly can back up their progress by winning their two matches against the province's bottom two sides, they will finish the campaign on six points.

Dublin are currently on five points after their win in Wexford Park, while it is assumed that Kilkenny will climb onto the five-point mark after their home game against Kildare on Saturday.

Whether or not Dublin earn a result in Salthill, Kilkenny will potentially need at least a point - and possibly more - in Donnycarney in Round 5. Unless, that is, Kildare can do them a favour by turning over Offaly in Newbridge.

LEINSTER SHC: As it stands after Round 3



The good news for Kilkenny is that their head-to-head record against Dublin is stellar, having won every single Leinster SHC match between the pair under the current format. In addition to that, they won the 2021 and 2024 Leinster finals against Dublin with considerable ease.

In 2024, however, they had only two points to spare in Parnell Park and their form is far more unreliable in 2026.

A draw between Dublin and Kilkenny in Donnycarney would potentially leave a three-way tie on six points, with one team exiting the championship on score difference. Kilkenny are currently at +2, with Dublin at +16, though the former will be confident of overhauling that deficit against Kildare this weekend, especially if the Dubs' score difference disimproves in Galway.

REMAINING FIXTURES

Round 4
Galway v Dublin, Pearse Stadium, Sat 16 May, 4.30pm
Kilkenny v Kildare, UPMC Nowlan Park, Sat 16 May, 6pm
Offaly v Wexford, Glenisk O'Connor Park, Sat 16 May, 6pm

Round 5 - all on Sunday 24 May, 2pm
Dublin v Kilkenny, Parnell Park
Kildare v Offaly, Cedral St Conleth's Park
Wexford v Galway, Chadwick's Wexford Park

Whatever the shake-up - and there are many possibilities - a draw for Kilkenny in Dublin is likely to see them survive in the championship, at least.

One wrinkle is that Wexford are not yet out of the running and can feasibly finish on six points.

The Wexford hurlers are at a low ebb after their latest loss to Dublin, which followed their heavy defeat to Kilkenny in Nowlan Park.

Most observers are now making Offaly favourites to beat Wexford for the first time in championship since 2012, but if Keith Rossiter's side can reassert their supremacy over the midlanders, they could potentially benefit from favourable scheduling.

A Galway victory over Dublin in Salthill on Saturday would guarantee top spot and a place in the Leinster final for the westerners, meaning they'll have nothing riding on their Round 5 game against Wexford in the south-east.

In that context, it's probable that Micheál Donoghue may give several of his younger stars - especially the Under-20 contingent - the weekend off. A defeat would hardly be a terrible outcome, if it held the potential of eliminating Kilkenny in the process.

It wouldn't be the first time a kind fixture list had come to Wexford's rescue in Leinster, though there's a lot that has to happen yet.

[Cyril Farrell fan]

Galway have a bad record against Dublin this last 15 years. I think we'll beat them in Salthill, but I wouldn't put my house on it.
I'd prefer to be already in the Leinster final by round 5, than having to play a full team against Wexford.

[johnnycool]

A great draw for Offaly, because it would have been a tragedy to lose.
And serious kudos to Eoghan Cahill. The last 65 and the free before that were tricky. For Kilkenny TJ missed 4 frees and Kenny missed 2 after him. It wasn't handy conditions for freetakers.

For the last 65, the Offaly players immediately appealed it and kicked up a proper fuss so the crowd knew something was up. It then made it difficult for Johnny Murphy to ignore the appeals.
If they'd held their whisht, it was a defeat.

It wouldn't be like the Offaly crowd to make a bit of a scene if they think the referee made a boob of something.

[NAG1]

Galway have a bad record against Dublin this last 15 years. I think we'll beat them in Salthill, but I wouldn't put my house on it.
I'd prefer to be already in the Leinster final by round 5, than having to play a full team against Wexford.

Dublin and Galway both improving but probably not enough yet to close the gap to Munster.

Great result for Offaly but just further proof to show KK are on the slide.