Westmeath Senior B Hurling Championship
Current season or competition:
2023 Westmeath Senior B Hurling Championship
IrishCraobh Sinsear B Iomána na hIarmhí
CodeHurling
Founded2020 (2020)
Region Westmeath (GAA)
TrophyMickey Power Cup
No. of teams6
Title holders St Oliver Plunkett's (1st title)
SponsorsSlevin's Coaches
TV partner(s)Iarmhí TV
Official websiteWestmeath GAA

The Westmeath Senior B Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Slevin's Coaches Westmeath Senior B Hurling Championship and abbreviated to the Westmeath SBHC) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Westmeath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association from 2020 for the second tier senior hurling teams in the county of Westmeath in Ireland.

In its current format, the Westmeath Senior B Hurling Championship begins with a group stage. The six participating teams play each other in a round-robin system. The three top-ranking teams proceed to the knockout phase that culminates with the final match at TEG Cusack Park. The winner of the Westmeath Senior B Championship qualifies for the subsequent Leinster Intermediate Club Championship.

St Oliver Plunkett's are the title holders after defeating Ringtown by 2–21 to 0–09 in the 2023 final.[1]

History

The Westmeath Intermediate Championship was founded in 1985 in an effort to bridge the standard of play between the Westmeath Senior Championship and the Westmeath Junior Championship. For 35 years, the Westmeath Intermediate Championship was the second tier championship in the Westmeath hurling championship system.

A review of Westmeath's hurling championships in 2019 proposed that the Westmeath SHC and Westmeath IHC be restructured. This resulted in the creation of the Westmeath SBHC. Each of the three championships would consist of six teams. The inaugural championship in 2020 featured three regraded teams from Group B of the 2019 Westmeath SHC, the loser of the SHC relegation playoff and the two 2019 Westmeath IHC finalists.[2]

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 three teams qualify for the knockout stage

Knockout stage

Semi-finals: The second and third-placed teams from the group stage contest this round. The winner of this game advances to the final.

Final: The top team from the group stage and the semi-final winner contest the final. The winning team are declared champions.

Relegation

The fifth and sixth-placed teams from the group stage take part in a relegation playoff to determine who drops to the Westmeath Intermediate Hurling Championship.

Teams

2023 teams

Club Location Colours Championship titles Last championship title
Castletown Geoghegan Castletown Geoghegan Black and amber 0 —
Crookedwood 1 2020
Cullion Mullingar Maroon and white 1 2021
Delvin 0 —
Fr Dalton's 1 2022
Ringtown Castlepollard Green and yellow 0 —

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.

Sponsorship

Slevin's Coaches had been providing sponsorship for a number of years and were unveiled as the sponsor of the Westmeath SBHC in July 2020.[3]

Trophy and medals

The Mickey Power Cup is the current prize for winning the championship. It was commissioned to honour Mickey Power, a member of the Cullion club who served in a number of administrative roles with the Westmeath County Board, including as Chairman of the Hurling Board.[4] He died in February 2020, shortly before the start of the inaugural championship.

In accordance with GAA rules, the County Board awards a set of gold medals to the championship winners. The medals depict a stylised version of the Westmeath GAA crest.

List of finals

Year Winners Runners-up Venue #
Club Score Club Score
2020 Crookedwood 0-16 Fr Dalton's 1-10 TEG Cusack Park [5]
2021 Cullion 5-20 Delvin 0-11 TEG Cusack Park [6]
2022 Fr Dalton's 1-20 Delvin 3-13 TEG Cusack Park [7]
2023 St Oliver Plunkett's 2-21 Ringtown 0-10 TEG Cusack Park

Roll of honour

Club Titles Runners-up Years won Years runners-up
Fr Dalton's 1 1 2022 2020
Crookedwood 1 0 2020 —
Cullion 1 0 2021 —
St Oliver Plunkett's 1 0 2023 —
Delvin 0 2 — 2021, 2022
Ringtown 0 1 — 2023

See also

References

  1. ↑ Buckley, Gerry (8 October 2023). "Goals for O'Leary and Curley as Plunkett's blitz Ringtown". Westmeath Examiner. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  2. ↑ "New format agreed for Senior Hurling Championship". Topic Westmeath. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  3. ↑ "Championship games will be all-ticket affairs". Topic. 8 July 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  4. ↑ Hughes, Paul (6 November 2021). "SHC 'B' final: Delvin blown away by Gillen and co". Westmeath Independent. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  5. ↑ "Crookedwood club notes". Hogan Stand. 19 October 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  6. ↑ Hughes, Paul (6 November 2021). "SHC 'B' final: Delvin blown away by Gillen and co". Westmeath Independent. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  7. ↑ "McCabe wonder score seals historic victory for Fr Dalton's". Westmeath Independent. 2 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
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