Qualifier draws will be made next Sunday

THE first-round draws for the All-Ireland football and hurling qualifier series will take place in Limerick on Sunday following the Munster hurling semi-final between Tipperary and Clare at the Gaelic Grounds – and shown live on TV3 at approximately 6.05.

The 16 teams that go in the draw for the first round of the All-Ireland football qualifiers are those that failed to qualify for a provincial semi-final – with the exception of New York. They are Down, Carlow, Monaghan, Offaly, Longford, London, Waterford, Tipperary, Leitrim, Armagh, Fermanagh, Meath, Wicklow, Louth, Wexford and Donegal.

It will be an entirely open draw in that there are no restrictions on possible pairings. The make-up of the eight first-round games will be based on the first county drawn in each pairing having home venue, provided the venue meets the criteria set down by the GAA’s national infrastructure committee.

All first-round games are then scheduled to be played on the weekend on July 4th, with the exact dates and venues to be announced next Monday.

The All-Ireland hurling qualifiers series is played in two phases. The first phase consists of the four first-round losers – Cork, Offaly, Laois and Antrim. They will also go into an open draw to create two games – and again the first county drawn in each pairing has home venue, provided the venue meets the GAA’s criteria. The two winners qualify for Phase Three.

The draw for Phase Two will involve the teams defeated in the Leinster and Munster semi-finals – all of which are down for decision this weekend – Kilkenny v Galway, Wexford v Dublin, Tipperary v Clare and the replay between Limerick and Waterford.

This is also an open draw, creating two games, where the first county drawn in each pairing has home venue. The two winners also qualify for Phase Three where they will play the Phase One winners.

The two Phase One games are scheduled for July 4th; the Phase Two games for July 11th; and the Phase Three games for July 18th. The two winners from Phase Three then go on to meet the beaten provincial finalists from Munster and Leinster in the two All-Ireland quarter-finals, set for the weekend of July 25th/26th.

The arrangement for promotion and regulation for all the senior intercounty hurling championship competitions under way was also clarified by the GAA yesterday. The Westmeath motion passed at congress last April will ensure that one county will be relegated from the Liam MacCarthy, Christy Ring and Nicky Rackard competitions this year – and likewise one county will be promoted from the same competitions.

Under the change in rule, there is no provision for play-off matches between counties from different tiers to determine standings for the following season, as has been the case in the past. These rules take effect in this year’s championship and will also apply for the 2010 season.