ON the usual quiet note, the 1996 hurling championships sponsored by Guinness, get underway tomorrow with the meeting of Westmeath and Carlow in Castletowngeoghegan in the Leinster preliminary round.

Although the pairing has a timeless look, there have been shifts in the relationship between Carlow and Westmeath. For a start, instead of passing each other on the stairs between the second and third division, the counties actually stayed put during the recent League.

It's new manager Moling Morrissey's first championship outing with Carlow whereas Georgie Leahy has a year's start on him. Aside from the contrasting League experience, Westmeath look stronger.