Inhurling, theAll-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final, the deciding match of theAll-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship competition, is considered the highest honour forreferees to be appointed to officiate.
The most recent final (2024) was refereed by Johnny Murphy. The 2021 final was refereed byFergal Horgan, withJames Owens on standby; Sean Stack as linesman; Liam Gordon on the sideline; and three umpires from Horgan's club Knockavilla Donaskeigh Kickhams and one umpire from Cashel King Cormacs.[1]
Men who referee a final that ends in a draw cannot also referee the replay. This rule was highlighted in 2019 whenDavid Gough — thought by consensus to have had a good game — was replaced byConor Lane for the replay.Colm O'Rourke in theSunday Independent column, "The GAA's view that the referee of a drawn game cannot take the replay defies common sense and logic. Why disqualify a referee when he has done a good job? If the referee is not up to it then certainly he should be left off, but when there is almost universal agreement that he is the best referee in the country then give him all the big games and replays too. The players want the best referees".[2]
Referees are chosen by theGaelic Athletic Association (GAA) for their impartiality and their assessed performance scores over that championship season. A clue to the identity of the final referee may be found among those chosen to referee the All-Ireland quarter-finals.[3] In recent years, a referee who has overseen an All-Ireland semi-final is never chosen for the final. However, he has tended to have refereed a quarter-final.[3]
When the decision is made, the identity of the referee chosen is revealed following the All-Ireland semi-finals and ahead of the final. A period of media attention may ensue, sometimes even before the announcement has been made.[3] It can be a referee's lifetime goal to get this game.[4]
| Year | Referee | Referee's club | Co. | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1887 | Pauric White | Offaly | ||
| 1889 | P. Tobin | Dublin | ||
| 1890 | John Sheehy | Limerick | ||
| 1891 | P. Tobin | Dublin | ||
| 1892 | Dan Fraher | Waterford | ||
| 1893 | J. J. Kenny | Dublin | ||
| 1894 | J. J. Kenny | Dublin | ||
| 1895 | J. J. Kenny | Dublin | ||
| 1896 | D. Wood | Dublin | ||
| 1897 | J. J. McCabe | Dublin | ||
| 1898 | J. J. McCabe | Dublin | ||
| 1899 | A. McKeogh | Dublin | ||
| 1900 | John McCarthy | Kilkenny | ||
| 1901 | John McCarthy | Kilkenny | ||
| 1902 | L. J. O'Toole | Dublin | ||
| 1903 | John McCarthy | Kilkenny | ||
| 1904 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1905 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1906 | T. Irwin | Cork | ||
| 1907 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1908 (draw) | T. Irwin | Cork | ||
| 1908 (replay) | J. McCarthy | |||
| 1909 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1910 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1911 | ? | |||
| 1912 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1913 | M. F. Crowe | |||
| 1914 | John Lalor | |||
| 1915 | Willie Walsh | Waterford | [5] | |
| 1916 | Willie Walsh | Waterford | [5] | |
| 1917 | Willie Walsh | Waterford | ||
| 1918 | Willie Walsh | Waterford | ||
| 1919 | Willie Walsh | Waterford | ||
| 1920 | T. McGrath | Clare | ||
| 1921 | Willie Walsh | Waterford | ||
| 1922 | Pat Dunphy | Laois | [5] |
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| Co. | Number of finals | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Westmeath | 6 | 2006, 2008, 2012 (draw), 2012 (replay), 2013 (replay), 2014 (draw) |
| Wexford | 5 | 1997, 1998, 2015, 2018, 2019 |
| Tipperary | 5 | 2000, 2005, 2017, 2020, 2021 |
| Limerick | 4 | 1999, 2001, 2003, 2024 |
| Offaly | 4 | 2011, 2013 (draw), 2014 (replay), 2016 |
| Cork | 3 | 2007, 2009, 2022 |
| Dublin | 2 | 2002, 2004 |
| Waterford | 1 | 2010 |
| Wicklow | 1 | 2023 |
Bold = referee still active at inter-county level
| Referee | Number of finals | Years |
|---|---|---|
| M. F. Crowe | 7 | 1904, 1905, 1907, 1909, 1910, 1912, 1913 |
| Willie Walsh | 7 | 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1921, 1931 (2nd replay) |
| J. McCarthy | 4 | 1900, 1901, 1903, 1908 (replay) |
| Seán Robbins | 4 | 1929, 1931 (draw), 1931 (replay), 1932 |
| Stephen Jordan | 4 | 1930, 1933, 1934 (draw), 1934 (replay) |
| Dickie Murphy | 4 | 1992, 1995, 1997, 1998 |
| Barry Kelly | 4 | 2006, 2008, 2012 (draw), 2014 (draw) |
| Brian Gavin | 4 | 2011, 2013 (draw), 2014 (replay), 2016 |
| J. J. Kenny | 3 | 1893, 1894, 1895 |
| Jim Flaherty | 3 | 1937, 1939, 1946 |
| Gerry Fitzgerald | 3 | 1959 (draw), 1959 (replay), 1961 |
| John Dowling | 3 | 1960, 1962, 1968 |
| Jimmy Hatton | 3 | 1963, 1966, 1970 |
| Pat O'Connor | 3 | 1999, 2001, 2003 |
| James Owens | 3 | 2015, 2018, 2019 |
| Fergal Horgan | 3 | 2017, 2020, 2021 |
| J. J. McCabe | 2 | 1897, 1898 |
| P. Tobin | 2 | 1889, 1891 |
| Tom Irwin | 2 | 1906, 1908 (draw) |
| Pat McCullagh | 2 | 1925, 1926 |
| Mick Hennessy | 2 | 1942, 1944 |
| Con Murphy | 2 | 1948, 1950 |
| Bill O'Donoghue | 2 | 1951, 1952 |
| Mick Hayes | 2 | 1965, 1967 |
| Seán O'Connor | 2 | 1969, 1975 |
| Noel O'Donoghue | 2 | 1980, 1982 |
| George Ryan | 2 | 1979, 1985 |
| Aodán Mac Suibhne | 2 | 2002, 2004 |
| Diarmuid Kirwan | 2 | 2007, 2009 |
| James McGrath | 2 | 2012 (replay), 2013 (replay) |
To discuss the matter, … former inter-county referee Pat McEnaney joined us … said it's not the only instance when referee selection was a bone of contention. 'If we go back even to 2015 and Dublin vs Kerry, David Coldrick refereed it and there was quite a bit of talk about that one as well,' said McEnaney… McEnaney emphasised that Coldrick acquitted himself well in 2015 despite all the talk. He also discussed the process of selecting final referees, including how 2019 would progress… 'If you look at how they went about it this year, David Gough did a quarter-final. [You also had] Paddy Neilaan[sic], Joe McQuillan and David Coldrick as your four referees. So you'd fancy one of them to come from that quarter-final and to me it's looking like David Gough. Because if you even look at the appointments for the quarter-final actually, he refereed Dublin and Cork,' said McEnaney… 'And I think that was the game he went to his umpires and turned it around. From memory, I thought he was very good that day. It's probably based on that performance that he's possibly favourite for the All-Ireland final.'