Wicklow Senior Hurling Championship

Wicklow Senior Hurling Championship
Current season or competition: 2023 Wicklow Senior Hurling Championship
Irish	Craobh Iomána Sinsearach Chill Mhantáin
Code	Hurling
Founded	1903
Region	Wicklow (GAA)
Trophy	O'Donoghue Cup
No. of teams	6
Title holders	Bray Emmets (9th title)
Most titles	Carnew Emmets (19 titles)
Sponsors	Lightning Protection Ireland
Official website	Wicklow GAA

The Wicklow Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Lightning Protection Ireland Senior Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Wicklow SHC) is an annual club hurling competition organised by the Wicklow County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association and contested by the top-ranking senior clubs in the county of Wicklow in Ireland, deciding the competition winners through a group and knockout format. It is the most prestigious competition in Wicklow hurling.

In its current format, the Wicklow Senior Hurling Championship begins with a group stage. The six participating teams play each other in a round-robin system. The four top-ranking teams proceed to the knockout phase that culminates with the final match at Echelon Park. The winner of the Wicklow Senior Championship, as well as being presented with the O'Donoghue Cup, qualifies for the subsequent Leinster Intermediate Club Championship.

The competition has been won by 14 teams, 10 of which have won it more than once. Carnew Emmets is the most successful team in the tournament's history, having won it 19 times. Bray Emmets are the reigning champions, having beaten Carnew Emmets by 1-15 to 2-10 in the 2023 final.

History

The first senior championship was won by Barndarrig in 1923. There was no Wicklow championship in 1938. There are currently seven teams taking part in the Championship:

• Carnew Emmets
• Glenealy
• Eire Óg
• Bray Emmets
• Kiltegan

Format

Group stage

Six clubs start in the group stage. Over the course of the group stage, each team plays once against the others in the group, resulting in each team being guaranteed five group games. Two points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and zero for a loss. The teams are ranked in the group stage table by points gained, then scoring difference and then their head-to-head record. The top four teams qualify for the knockout stage

Knockout stage

Semi-finals: The top four teams from the group stage contest this round. The two winners from these two games advance to the final.

Final: The two semi-final winners contest the final. The winning team are declared champions.

Qualification for subsequent competitions

At the end of the championship, the winning team qualify to the subsequent Leinster Intermediate Club Hurling Championship, the winner of which progresses to the All-Ireland Intermediate Club Hurling Championship.

Roll of honour

List of finals

Notes:

• 1937- Although Whitestown (Baltinglass) won on the day they were later stripped of the title and suspended for playing illegal players.
• 2008 - The first match ended in a draw: Glenealy 1-12, Carnew Emmets 1-12.
• 2016 - The first match ended in a draw: Bray Emmets 1-10, Carnew Emmets 0-12.
• 2022- The first match ended in a draw: Bray Emmets 1-16, Glenealy 1-16.

Records and statistics

Final

Team

• Most wins: 19:
  • Carnew Emmets (1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1989, 1991, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2009)
• Most consecutive wins: 5:
  • Bray Emmets (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023)
• Most appearances in a final: 38:
  • Carnew Emmets (1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2023)
• Most appearances in a final without ever winning: 8:
  • Kilcoole (1954, 1958, 1960, 1963, 1964, 1969, 1983, 1985)
• Most defeats in a final: 19:
  • Carnew Emmets (1966, 1971, 1982, 1986, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2023)

Teams

By decade

The most successful team of each decade, judged by number of Wicklow Senior Hurling Championship titles, is as follows:

• 1910s: 2 for Rathnew (1911-13)
• 1920s: 3 for Barndarrig (1923-24-26)
• 1930s: 5 for Rathnew (1932-33-34-37-39)
• 1940s: 6 for Avondale (1940-41-42-46-47-49)
• 1950s: 4 for Barndarrig (1951-54-55-56)
• 1960s: 4 for Carnew Emmets (1965-67-68,-69)
• 1970s: 5 for Carnew Emmets (1973-74-76-78-79)
• 1980s: 4 for Carnew Emmets (1980-81-84-89)
• 1990s: 6 for Kiltegan (1993-94-95-97-98-99)
• 2010s: 6 for Glenealy (2010-11-12-13-17-18)
• 2020s: 4 for Bray Emmets (2020-21-22-23)

Gaps

Longest gaps between successive championship titles:

• 62 years: Bray Emmets (1952-2014)
• 60 years: St Patrick's (1930-1990)
• 32 years: Barndarrig (1956-1988)