Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship

The Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-Op Superstores Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Cork PIHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Cork County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association and contested by the top-ranking intermediate clubs in the county of Cork in Ireland. It is the third tier overall in the entire Cork hurling championship system.

Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
Current season or competition: 2020 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
Code	Hurling
Founded	2004
Region	Cork (GAA)
Trophy	Séamus Long Cup
No. of teams	12
Title holders	Blarney (2nd title)
Most titles	Ballinhassig (2 titles) Blarney (2 titles)
Sponsors	Co-Op Superstores
Official website	Official website

The Cork Premier Intermediate Championship was introduced in 2004 following a split in the existing Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship. At the time of its creation it was the second tier of Cork hurling.

In its soon-to-be introduced format, the Cork Premier Intermediate Championship will begin in April. The 12 participating club teams will be drawn into three groups of four teams and play each other in a round-robin system. The three group winners and the three runners-up proceed to the knockout phase that culminates with the final match at Páirc Uí Rinn in October. The winner of the Cork Premier Intermediate Championship, as well as being presented with the Séamus Long Cup, qualifies for the subsequent Munster Club Championship.

The competition has been won by 15 teams. Ballinhassig and Blarney are the only teams to have won the tournament on more than one occasion. Blarney are the reigning champions, having beaten Castlelyons by 1-20 to 0-15 in the 2020 final.

History

The Cork Intermediate Championship was founded in 1909 in an effort to bridge the standard of play between the Cork Senior Championship and the Cork Junior Championship. For almost a century, the Cork Intermediate Championship was effectively the second tier championship in the Cork hurling championship system.

In 2003 the Cork County Board Executive established a Hurling Championship Review Committee in an effort to improve the competitiveness of the Cork Senior Championship. The committee also proposed the splitting of the existing Cork Intermediate Championship in two with the creation of a 16-team Cork Premier Intermediate Championship which became the second tier of the Cork hurling championship system.

The championship was first played in 2004 with the winner, St. Catherine's, gaining automatic promotion to the following year's Cork Senior Championship. Their place in the championship was taken by Watergrasshill who won the Cork Intermediate Championship. The idea of relegation was introduced in 2006 with St. Finbarr's becoming the first team to be relegated from the championship after losing a play-off to Ballincollig. Similarly, Delaney Rovers became the first team to be relegated to the championship after losing their senior status following a play-off defeat by Castlelyons. Relegation was suspended in 2013 and again from 2015 to 2019.

Format

History

16 clubs entered the inaugural championship in 2004 and a double elimination format was used. Each team was guaranteed at least two games before being eliminated from the championship. In 2006 a relegation section was introduced. The four teams who lost both their games in Round 1 and Round 2 entered the relegation play-offs with the eventual losing team being relegated. An extra round of games was added to the championship in 2010. Each team was now given the opportunity of losing both of their games in Round 1 and Round 2 but remaining in the championship. This format remained in place until 2016 when it was decided to revert to the previous format.

Development

On 2 April 2019, a majority of 136 club delegates voted to restructure the championship once again.[1][2] The new format also led to a reduction in the number of participating clubs from 16 to 12.

Overview

Group stage: The 12 club teams are divided into three groups of four. Over the course of the group stage, which features one game in April and two games in August, each team plays once against the others in the group, resulting in each team being guaranteed at least three 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 two teams in each group qualify for the knockout stage, with the two best-placed teams receiving byes to the semi-finals.

Quarter-finals: Two lone quarter-finals feature the four lowest-placed team from the group stage. Two teams qualify for the next round.

Semi-finals: The two semi-finals feature four teams. Two teams qualify for the next round.

Final: The two semi-final winners contest the final. The winning team are declared champions and gain automatic promotion to the following year's Cork Senior A Championship.

Participating teams

Team	Location	Colours
Aghada	Aghada	Green and white
Ballincollig	Ballincollig	Green and white
Ballinhassig	Ballinhassig	Blue and white
Blackrock	Blackrock	Green and yellow
Blarney	Blarney	Red and white
Carrigaline	Carrigaline	Blue and yellow
Castlelyons	Castlelyons	Green and yellow
Courcey Rovers	Ballinspittle	Red and white
Inniscarra	Inniscarra	Blue and white
Valley Rovers	Innishannon	Green and white
Youghal	Youghal	Maroon and yellow
Watergrasshill	Watergrasshill	Red and white

Sponsorship

Permanent TSB became the first title sponsor of the championship, serving in that capacity for just one year until 2005 when the Evening Echo signed a sponsorship deal. In 2020, Dairygold Co-Op Superstores were unveiled as the new title sponsor of the Cork Premier Intermediate Championship.[3]

Venues

Early rounds

The rebuilt Páirc Uí Chaoimh hosted the 2018 final between Charleville and Courcey Rovers.

Fixtures in the opening rounds of the championship are usually played at a neutral venue that is deemed halfway between the participating teams. Some of the more common venues include Clonmult Memorial Park, Páirc Shéamuis de Barra, St. Catherine's Park, Church Road and Páirc Liam Mhic Cárthaigh.

Final

The final has always been played at one of Cork GAA's two main stadiums. On several occasions the final has been played at Páirc Uí Chaoimh as the curtain raiser to the senior final. The rebuilding and subsequent improvement works to Páirc Uí Chaoimh resulted in several finals being held at Páirc Uí Rinn.[4]

Managers

Managers in the Cork Championship are involved in the day-to-day running of the team, including the training, team selection, and sourcing of players. Their influence varies from club-to-club and is related to the individual club committees. The manager is assisted by a team of two or three selectors and a backroom team consisting of various coaches.

Recent winning managers

Manager(s)	Team	Wins	Winning years
Dermot O'Riordan	Carrigtwohill	1	2007
Tadhg Hurley	Blarney	1	2008
Finbarr Bermingham	Douglas	1	2009
Anthony McCarthy	Ballymartle	1	2010
Diarmuid Corcoran	Courcey Rovers	1	2011
Johnny Crowley	Ballinhassig	1	2012
Christy Cooney	Youghal	1	2013
Jimmy Quilty	Ballyhea	1	2014
Eugene Desmond	Newcestown	1	2015
Niall O'Halloran	Bandon	1	2016
Donagh Duane	Kanturk	1	2017
John Moloney	Charleville	1	2018
Dave Colbert James O'Connor	Fr. O'Neill's	1	2019
Paul O'Leary	Blarney	1	2020

Trophy

The winning team is presented with the Séamus Long Cup. A national school teacher by profession, Séamus Long (1884-1953) was elected secretary of the Ballincollig club in 1914, before serving as the first secretary of the Muskerry Board in 1924. A founder-member of the Ballinora club the same year, he was the club's first chairman. Long also served as vice-chairman of the Cork County Board and was a Munster Council delegate from 1949 until his death in 1953.

List of finals

Year	Winners	Score	Runners-up	Score	Venue
2004	St. Catherine's	1-11	Courcey Rovers	1-08	Páirc Uí Chaoimh
2005	Ballinhassig	1-16	Aghada	1-11	Páirc Uí Rinn
2006	Bishopstown	0-20	Carrigtwohill	1-11	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[5]
2007	Carrigtwohill	3-14	Watergrasshill	3-12	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[6]
2008	Blarney	0-13	Courcey Rovers	1-09	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[7]
2009	Douglas	0-20	Ballymartle	0-16	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[8]
2010	Ballymartle	2-14	Tracton	0-13	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[9]
2011	Courcey Rovers	0-15	Youghal	1-09	Páirc Uí Rinn	[10]
2012	Ballinhassig	1-19	Bandon	1-12	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[11]
2013	Youghal	0-11	Castlelyons	0-10	Páirc Uí Rinn	[12]
2014	Ballyhea	1-17	Newcestown	0-16	Páirc Uí Chaoimh	[13]
2015	Newcestown	1-23	Valley Rovers	0-08	Páirc Uí Rinn	[14]
2016	Bandon	1-20	Fermoy	1-14	Páirc Uí Rinn	[15]
2017	Kanturk	0-17	Mallow	1-12	Páirc Uí Rinn	[16]
2018	Charleville	0-15 (1-09)	Courcey Rovers	0-14 (0-12)	Páirc Uí Rinn	[17]
2019	Fr O'Neills	3-23	Kilworth	1-20	Páirc Uí Rinn	[18]
2020	Blarney	1-20	Castlelyons	0-15	Páirc Uí Chaoimh

Records and statistics

Teams

The following is a list of teams who have played in the Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship since its formation in 2004 to the current championships season. As of the 2020 season, 31 teams have played in the Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship.

All statistics here refer to time in the Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship only, with the exception of 'Most Recent Finish' (which refers to all levels of play). Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship teams playing in the 2020 championship season are indicated in bold. A 'spell' refers to a number of consecutive seasons within the championship, uninterrupted by relegation. If the longest spell is the current spell, this is shown in bold.

Club	Location	Total seasons	Total spells	Longest spell	Most recent promotion	Most recent relegation	Total seasons absent	Seasons	Most recent finish	Best finish	Top scorer
Aghabullogue	Coachford	9	1	9	Never promoted	2012	0	2004-2012	Semi-finalists Cork IHC	Quarter-finalists	Pa Finnegan (8-96)
Aghada	Aghada	8	2	5	2017	2008	8	2004–2008 2018–	Group stage	Runners-up	Trevor O'Keeffe (2-116)
Argideen Rangers	Timoleague	6	1	6	Never promoted	2011	0	2006-2011	Quarter-finalists Cork IHC	Quarter-finalists
Ballincollig	Ballincollig	12	2	10	Never promoted	2013	0	2004-2013 2019–	Quarter-finalists	Semi-finalists
Ballinhassig	Ballinhassig	10	3	7	2012	Never relegated	7	2004–2005 2012 2014–	Group stage	Champions
Ballyhea	Ballyhea	11	1	11	2014	Never relegated	0	2004-2014	Quarter-finalists Cork SHC	Champions	Neil Ronan (9-144)
Ballymartle	Riverstick	4	1	4	2010	Never relegated	0	2007-2010	Round 2 Cork SHC	Champions
Bandon	Bandon	5	1	5	2016	Never relegated	0	2012-2016	Round 3 Cork SHC	Champions	Ronan Crowley (8-116)
Bishopstown	Bishopstown	3	1	3	2006	Never relegated	0	2004-2006	Quarter-finalists Cork SHC	Champions	Pa Cronin (3-62)
Blackrock	Blackrock	1	1	1	Never promoted	2020	0	2020	Relegated	Relegated
Blarney	Blarney	15	2	10	2020	Never relegated	2	2004–2008 2011–2020	Champions	Champions	Mark Cremin (0-90)
Carrigaline	Carrigaline	12	1	12	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2009–	Semi-finalists	Quarter-finalists	Rob O'Shea (14-153)
Carrigtwohill	Carrigtwohill	4	1	4	2007	Never relegated	0	2004-2007	Semi-finalists Cork SHC	Champions	Niall McCarthy (0-80)
Castlelyons	Castlelyons	11	1	11	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2010–	Runners-up	Runners-up
Charleville	Charleville	3	1	3	2018	Never relegated	0	2016-2018	Round 3 Cork SHC	Champions	Darragh Fitzgibbon (3-66)
Cloyne	Cloyne	7	1	7	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2013-2019	Round 2	Semi-finalists	Diarmuid O'Sullivan (17-94)
Courcey Rovers	Ballinspittle	14	2	8	2011	Never relegated	3	2004–2011 2015–	Semi-finalists	Champions	Daire Lordan (0-104)
Delanys	Dublin Hill	1	1	1	Never promoted	2007	0	2007	Knockout stage City JAHC	Relegation final	Paul Finnegan (0-13)
Douglas	Douglas	2	1	2	2009	Never relegated	0	2008-2009	Round 3 Cork SHC	Champions	Mark Harrington (6-16)
Fermoy	Fermoy	5	1	5	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2015-2019	Round 3	Runners-up	Liam Coleman (6-128)
Fr. O'Neill's	Ballymacoda	6	2	3	2019	2010	6	2008-2010 2017-2019	Champions	Champions	Declan Dalton (9-78)
Inniscarra	Inniscarra	17	1	17	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2004–	Group stage	Semi-finalists
Kanturk	Kanturk	4	1	4	2017	Never relegated	0	2014-2017	Round 3 Cork SHC	Champions
Kilbrittain	Kilbrittain	4	1	4	Never promoted	2014	0	2011-2014	Relegation play-off Cork IHC	Semi-finalists
Kilworth	Kilworth	7	1	7	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2013-2019	Runners-up	Runners-up	Noel McNamara (15-136)
Mallow	Mallow	16	1	16	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2004-2019	Round 3	Runners-up	Seán Hayes (13-141)
Newcestown	Newcestown	12	1	12	2015	Never relegated	0	2004-2015	Round 2 Cork SHC	Champions	Eoin Kelly (9-142)
St. Catherine's	Ballynoe	1	2	1	2004	2009	0	2004 2009	Round 4 Cork IHC	Champions	Michael Hegarty (1-34)
St. Finbarr's	Togher	3	1	3	Never promoted	2006	0	2004-2006	Round 3 Cork IHC	Round 3
Tracton	Tracton	14	1	14	Never promoted	2017	0	2004-2017	Round 4 Cork IHC	Runners-up	Ronan Walsh (12-336)
Valley Rovers	Innishannon	11	1	11	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2010–	Relegation playoff	Runners-up	Chris O'Leary (9-153)
Youghal	Youghal	13	2	10	Never promoted	Never relegated	4	2004-2013 2018–	Group stage	Champions	Leigh Desmond (12-141)
Watergrasshill	Watergrasshill	16	1	16	Never promoted	Never relegated	0	2005–	Quarter-finalists	Runners-up

Team

• Most wins: 2:
  • Ballinhassig (2005, 2012)
• Most appearances in a final: 3:
  • Courcey Rovers (2004, 2008, 2011 )
• Biggest win: 18 points
  • Newcestown 1-23 - 0-08 Valley Rovers, (2015)
• Most goals in a final: 6
  • Carrigtwohill 3-14 - 3-12 Watergrasshill, (2007)
• Most points in a final: 36
  • Douglas 0-20 - 0-16 Ballymartle, (2009)
• Most goals by a winning side: 3
  • Carrigtwohill 3-14 - 3-12 Watergrasshill, (2007)
• Most goals by a losing side: 3
  • Watergrasshill 3-12 - 3-14 Carrigtwohill, (2007)
• Most points by a winning side: 23
  • Newcestown 1-23 - 0-08 Valley Rovers, (2015)
• Most points by a losing side: 16
  • Ballymartle 0-16 - 0-20 Douglas, (2009)
  • Newcestown 0-16 - 1-17 Ballyhea, (2014)
• Highest cumulative score overall: 44
  • Carrigtwohill 3-14 - 3-12 Watergrasshill, (2007)
• Highest cumulative score by a winning team: 26
  • Newcestown 1-23 - 0-08 Valley Rovers, (2015)
• Highest cumulative score by a losing team: 21
  • Watergrasshill 3-12 - 3-14 Carrigtwohill, (2007)
• Most defeats: 2
  • Courcey Rovers (2004, 2008)

All time

As of match played 12 October 2019.

Rank	Name	Team	Goals	Points	Total
1	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	12	336	372
2	Rob O'Shea	Carrigaline	14	153	195
3	Noel McNamara	Kilworth	15	136	181
4	Seán Hayes	Mallow	13	141	180
5	Leigh Desmond	Youghal	12	141	177

Overall

Year	Top scorer	Team	Score	Total
2004	Pa Dineen	Mallow	3-25	34
2005	Trevor O'Keeffe	Aghada	1-45	48
2006	Pa Cronin	Bishopstown	3-36	45
2007	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	5-30	45
2008	Ger O'Leary	Fr. O'Neill's	2-38	44
2009	Daniel Twomey	Newcestown	3-20	36
2010	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	2-57	63
2011	Éamonn Collins	Valley Rovers	6-33	51
2012	Ronan Crowley	Bandon	4-33	45
2013	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	2-46	52
2014	Adrian Mannix	Kilworth	0-43	43
2015	Seán Hayes	Mallow	4-36	48
2016	Liam Coleman	Fermoy	3-51	60
2017	Chris O'Leary	Valley Rovers	3-32	41
2018	Tadhg O'Sullivan	Courcey Rovers	1-49	52
2019	Declan Dalton	Fr. O'Neill's	3-45	54
2020	Mark Coleman	Blarney	1-50	53

Single game

Year	Top scorer	Team	Score	Total
2004	Pa Dineen	Mallow	1-09	12
2005	Neil Ronan	Ballyhea	2-08	14
2006	Pa Cronin	Bishopstown	2-07	13
2007	Leigh Desmond	Youghal	1-09	12
2008	Ger O'Leary	Fr. O'Neill's	2-09	15
2009	Daniel Twomey	Newcestown	0-12	12
	Maurice O'Sullivan	Ballyhea
2010	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	0-13	13
2011	Aaron Sheehan	Mallow	1-10	16
	Rory O'Doherty	Ballincollig
2012	Ronan Crowley	Bandon	3-06	15
2013	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	2-10	16
	Adrian Mannix	Kilworth	1-13
2014	Adrian Mannix	Kilworth	0-13	13
2015	Seán Hayes	Mallow	2-13	19
2016	Noel McNamara	Kilworth	3-05	14
2017	Chris O'Leary	Valley Rovers	1-10	13
2018	Tadhg O'Sullivan	Courcey Rovers	1-09	12
	Shane O'Regan	Watergrasshill	0-12
2019	Brian Kelleher	Carrigaline	2-10	16
	Brian Kelleher	Carrigaline
2020	Eoin O'Farrell	Blackrock	1-12	15
	Chris O'Leary	Valley Rovers	0-15

Cumulative

Pos.	Player	Team	Score	Total
1	Ronan Crowley	Bandon	2-16	22
2	Tadhg O'Sullivan	Courcey Rovers	0-15	15
3	Daniel Twomey	Newcestown	1-11	14
	Declan Dalton	Fr. O'Neill's
	Mark Coleman	Blarney	0-14
4	Seánie O'Farrell	Carrigtwohill	3-02	11
	Rory O'Dwyer	Ballymartle	0-11
	Niall McCarthy	Carrigtwohill
	Noel McNamara	Kilworth
5	Fintan O'Leary	Ballinhassig	2-04	10
	Leigh Desmond	Youghal	1-07

Individual

Year	Top scorer	Team	Score	Total
2004	Michael Hegarty	Courcey Rovers	0-05	5
2005	Trevor O'Keeffe	Aghada	0-09	9
2006	Pa Cronin	Bishopstown	0-09	9
2007	Seánie O'Farrell	Carrigtwohill	3-01	10
2008	Cian Lordan	Courcey Rovers	1-03	6
2009	Rory O'Dwyer	Ballymartle	0-10	10
2010	Ronan Walsh	Tracton	0-07	7
2011	Leigh Desmond	Youghal	1-04	7
2012	Ronan Crowley	Bandon	1-06	9
2013	Colm Spillane	Castlelyons	0-07	7
2014	Daniel Twomey	Newcestown	0-06	6
2015	Daniel Twomey	Newcestown	1-05	8
2016	Ronan Crowley	Bandon	1-10	13
2017	Lorcán McLoughlin	Kanturk	0-08	8
2018	Tadhg O'Sullivan	Courcey Rovers	0-08	8
2019	Declan Dalton	Fr. O'Neill's	1-11	14
2020	Mark Coleman	Blarney	0-14	14

References

1. Cormican, Eoghan (26 March 2019). "Here's a breakdown of the proposals to restructure the Cork county championships". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
2. "Cork clubs vote down radical restructuring proposals". RTÉ Sport. 2 April 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
3. O'Connor, Colm (27 July 2020). "Cork GAA ink hurling sponsorship deal with Dairygold Co-Op Superstores". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
4. Horgan, John (28 July 2019). "Work on the new pitch at Páirc Uí Chaoimh is underway to take advantage of summer growth". Evening Echo. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
5. Larkin, Brendan (21 October 2006). "Bishopstown's young guns bid to come of age". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
6. "Carrigtwohill make the ascent". Hogan Stand. 15 January 2008. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
7. "Blarney make the breakthrough". Southern Star. 25 October 2008. Archived from the original on 17 February 2013. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
8. Weldon, Eoin (15 October 2009). "Douglas set for senior". Cork Independent. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
9. Moynihan, Michael (11 October 2010). "Tracton second best again in derby duel". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
10. Lester, Bob (10 October 2011). "Clinical Courcey's finally go the distance". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
11. O'Callaghan, Therese (8 October 2012). "Ballinhassig back at the top table". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
12. O'Callaghan, Therese (14 October 2013). "Youghal smash 'n' grab". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
13. Hurley, Denis (13 October 2014). "Ballyhea 'yes' at return to senior ranks". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
14. Hurley, Denis (12 October 2015). "Five-star Newcestown's glorious day". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
15. O'Callaghan, Therese (10 October 2016). "Masterclass by Ronan Crowley earns Bandon senior status". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
16. O'Callaghan, Therese (9 October 2017). "Kanturk the kingpins after show of fitness and courage". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
17. O'Callaghan, Therese (30 October 2018). "Charleville back in the big time as Courceys held at bay". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
18. Horgan, John (13 October 2019). "Dalton and Dunne deliver glory for Fr O'Neill's hurlers against Kilworth". Evening Echo. Retrieved 13 October 2019.