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TheAll-Ireland Poc Fada Hurling & Camogie Championships is an annual tournament testing the skills of Ireland's besthurlers andcamogie players.Poc Fada isIrish for "long puck". The championships are sponsored by Martin Donnelly (who has been a sponsor since 1996).

The All Ireland Poc Fada Finals have taken place on the Saturday of the Irish August Public Holiday each year since 2005. In 2018 the All Ireland Hurling Championship was restructured, with the 2019 Finals taking place on Saturday 3 August. The finals now take place on the August Bank Holiday Monday.^[1]

The Senior Men's Hurling Poc Fada Final starts at An Fhána Mór, Annaverna,County Louth. Competitors must puck (hit) asliotar with ahurley to the top of Annaverna Mountain (An Céide), and onwards to Carn an Mhadaidh. After a short break they continue down to An Gabhlán, before finishing back at the start of the course. The whole course measures 5 kilometres (3.1 mi).

The National Poc Fada Committee is a body appointed by the GAA President to oversee the planning and staging of the prestigious All-Ireland Poc Fada Championship. This committee works alongside the local organizing committees in Louth (who handle logistics on Annaverna Mountain) to ensure the competition runs smoothly.

The 2025 National Poc Fada Committee is Chairperson Tom Ryan, Secretary Cieran Kearney, P.R.O. Dave Murray, Administrator Darragh Cox, Ulster Rep Kieran Farmer, Munster Rep Joe Carton, Connacht Rep Anthony Flaherty, Camogie Rep Lauren Solon, Local Louth & Armagh Committee Rep's Paul Comiskey and Pat McGinn

Honorary President's Pat Harnett & Damien Callan.Chairperson Paul Cumiskey, Secretary Aidan Quinn, Event Safety Officer Pat Hamilton, Event Controller Graham Lowndes. Committee Members Josie Maguire, David Morrissey, Charlie Geoghegan, Margaret Dignam, Shay Larkin, Paul Callan, Pat McGinn, Fra Kieran, Cormac O’Donoghue, Mark McAllister.

The 12 competitors competing in this category qualify are the four provincial champions, the four provincial runners-up, the current champion, 2 invitationals places and the local Louth GAA representative. In the past competitors have come from USA, Europe and South Africa.

"Corn Setanta ("the sliotar cup)" is awarded to the player who takes the lowest number of pucks to complete the course. Ties are broken by the distance by which the player's last puck crosses the finish line.

The distance of the first poc taken by the each of the senior men is recorded. The player who has the longest first poc is awarded the Paul Ward Cup. The Paul Ward Cup is to honour the memory of committee member Mr Paul Ward, who died in 2021.

Shared between the pairing drawn prior to the competition as the pair returning the fewest combined pucks for the course. Record holders still to be clarified! This competition has now been discontinued.

There are six competitors in the Senior Camogie Final. The current champion, the 4 current provincial champions and an invitational nominee from An Cumann Camógaíochta.

There are currently only 4 participants in this event, 1 from each of the 4 provincial qualifiers. If the situation occurs where the winner of the All Ireland final is eligible to compete at the same age group the following year he will be asked to return and defend his All Ireland title. To date this has happened twice when the 2011 Under 16 champion (Cillian Kiely of Offaly) successfully retained the All Ireland title in 2012. This feat was repeated by his brother Cathal, the 2016 champion, who also retained his title in 2017.

The tournament was founded in 1960 by Fr. Pól Mac Sheáin and the Naomh Moninne club based in Fatima,Dundalk,Louth, with the first All Ireland event taking place in 1961,Limerick man Vincent Godfrey was the first winner, out of 16 hurlers invited. The competition went off the calendar after 1969 before returning in 1981 with 12 competitors.

The concept of the competition originates in the Irish legend of "Táin Bó Cuailgne" whenCúchulainn, who as the boy Setanta set out from his home atDún Dealgan to the King's court atEmain Macha hitting his sliotar before him and running ahead to catch it as he travelled over theCooley Mountains.

In 2001 the Poc Fada was held atDundalk Stadium (Dundalk Racecourse) due tofoot-and-mouth disease on theCooley Peninsula, doing two laps of the circuit (2 miles 880 yards / 4,023 metres). The 2005 tournament was won by Albert Shanahan ofLimerick, with internationalsoccer playerNiall Quinn (who played forDublin in the 1983 All-Ireland Minor final) also competing.

Almost all of the winners have been from traditional hurling counties, butDinny Donnelly (Meath), Gerry Goodwin (Tyrone), Colin Byrne (Wicklow), Paul Dunne (Louth), Mary Henry (Westmeath), 2009 champion Gerry Fallon (Roscommon) and 2010 championGraham Clarke (Down) have been exceptions. The record currently stands at 48 pucks (an average of 104 metres per puck), achieved byBrendan Cummins (Tipperary) in 2004. The current record for the Camogie course is held by Patricia Jackman of Waterford when in 2013 she completed the course in 27 pocs and 7 metres (over the end line). Traditionally the most successful competitors have generally been goalkeepers, owing to the need for goalkeepers to puck the ball far up the field in a game of hurling but increasingly there are more "outfield" Hurlers and Camogs out qualifying their goalkeeping contemporaries at county and provincial final level.

§ short course 2001 – took place at the Dundalk Racecourse (two and a half-mile) due to foot-and-mouth disease.§ Less mountainous course 2012 – The Senior Men's competition was played over the "Lower" course due to the prevailing weather conditions on Finals' Day. They started at the 2.14 km (1.33 mi) course start line pucking to "An Gábhlan" and back to the start line where they turned and repeated the course for a second time. The course distance was 4.24 km (2.63 mi).§ short course 2021 – the shorter Camogie/Juvenile course was used due to heavyfog on the mountains.^[2] § Section 2 was not used due to high winds.§ short course 2025 - the second and third sections were removed due to adverse weather (High Winds)

Uses a shorter course of just 2 stages from "An Fhana Mór" to "An Gabhlan" and back, a distance of 2.14 km (1.33 miles). The current record for the Camogie course is held by Patricia Jackman of Waterford when in 2013 she completed the course in 27 pocs and 7 metres (over the end line).Lyndsey Condell of Carlow's record stood from 2008 until 2013 when she completed the course in 28 pocs and 67 metres (over the end line) – Scoresheet not available online but has been verified.^{[dubious –discuss][by whom?]} Catriona Daly (Galway) finishing 2nd to Patricia in 2013 with 28 pocs and 17.5m is in third place. Mary Henry of Westmeath in fourth place with 28 pocs and 4 metres (over the end line) in 2006.

Uses the same course as the Camogie finalists.

Uses the same course as the Camogie finalists.

• An Poc Fada.net – The Poc Fada portal for News, History, Pictures and Results
• The Poc Fada on gaa.ie
• GAA Poc Fada

• The Poc Fada on gaa.ie
• GAA Poc Fada on Facebook
• GAA Poc Fada on Twitter
• MD My Club Shop GAA Poc Fada Official Sponsor
• An Poc Fada.net – The Poc Fada portal for News, History, Pictures and Results

• All-Ireland Hurling Championships

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