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Ulster GAA Hurling Senior Championship
Irish	Craobh Iomána Uladh
Code	Hurling
Founded	1901; 124 years ago (1901)
Abolished	2018
Region	Ulster (GAA)
Trophy	Liam Harvey Cup
No. of teams	4
Last Title holders	Antrim (57th title)
Most titles	Antrim (57 titles)
TV partner(s)	RTÉ,BBC Northern Ireland
Official website	Official website

TheUlster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as theUlster Championship, was an annualinter-countyhurling competition organised by theUlster Council of theGaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It was the highest inter-county hurling competition in theprovince of Ulster, and was contested every year between the1901 championship and the 2017 Championship. As of 2023 there had been no attempt to revive the competition.^[1]

The final, usually held in July, served as the culmination of a series of games played during June, and the results determined which team received the Liam Harvey Cup. The championship was played on astraight knockout basis whereby once a team loses they are eliminated from the championship.

In 2016, a two-tier format began with four teams competing in the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, and four in the Ulster Senior Hurling Shield.

The title has been won by five Ulster counties, all of which have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Antrim who have won the competition 57 times.Antrim are also the title holders, defeatingArmagh by 5–22 to 1–12 in the2017 final.^[2]

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While theMunster Hurling Championship and theLeinster Hurling Championship are generally held in very high regard, and have produced the vast majority of recent All-Ireland Hurling Champions, the Ulster Championship has not been regarded historically as of a similar standard, and the Ulster champions have entered the All-Ireland Hurling Championship at an earlier round than the Munster and Leinster champions.

This is due to a number of factors, one of which is the dominance ofGaelic football in eight of the nine counties of Ulster. An Ulster team has never won theAll-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, althoughAntrim were finalists in 1943 and 1989.Antrim have dominated the Ulster Championship throughout its existence, winning the title 57 times to date.

While below the standard of Leinster and Munster hurling, the Ulster championship has been generally more competitive than the now discontinued Connacht Senior Hurling Championship. However,Galway, by far the strongest team in Connacht, have historically performed much better than any Ulster team, with several All-Ireland titles, and generally recognised as one of the major powers in the sport.

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The following are a list of upsets and moments in the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship:

• Down 2–16 – 0–11 Antrim (12 July 1992 atCasement Park) – An historic day for Down who claimed a first provincial title since 1941. Victory would have been more decisive but for a tally of 13 wides in the first half. While Antrim lacked an attacking ace, Down'sGerard McGrattan was their candidate forman of the match. GoalkeeperNoel Keith also brought off some remarkable saves, most notably from aCiaran Barr shot in the first half.
• Derry 4–8 – 0–19 Antrim (9 July 2000 atCasement Park) – An historic day for Derry who secured the Ulster title for the first time in 92 years.Dual playerKieran McKeever got the opening goal for Derry, whileGary Biggs andOllie Collins scored Derry's other two goals to give Derry an eight-point interval lead. A replay looked likely afterJohn O'Dwyer's late goal levelled the scores minutes from time, however, it was Collins again scoring from a free to gain the winning point, and the title for Derry.
• Derry 1–17 – 3–10 Down (15 July 2001 atCasement Park) – A first for Derry as they retain the Ulster title for the only time in their history. It was the first final not to feature Antrim since 1934. A point fromJohn O'Dwyer won the match for Derry. Despite dominating the play in the second half, Down only managed to score three points.
• Antrim 2–20 – 1–14 New York (22 October 2006 at Canton Field) – For the first and only time in the history of the championships, the Ulster final was played at Canton Field inBoston. This was to facilitate some of the New York teams who were unable to travel to Ireland due to their immigration status. A tally of 1–7 forJohnny McIntosh helped Antrim to a fifth successive championship.

In the first tier, the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, four teams compete in a knock-out format. The winners receive the Liam Harvey cup. The two teams beaten in the semi-finals of the Championship face each other in the relegation play-off with the losing team relegated to the following seasons Shield.

In the second tier, the Ulster Senior Hurling Shield, four teams compete in a knock-out format, with the winner gaining promotion to the championship.Cavan do not participate.

The Shield winners are promoted to the championship and the loser of the championship relegation play-off are relegated.

There is no longer a direct path for the Ulster Champions in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. The Ulster counties now compete in theLeinster Senior Hurling Championship,Joe McDonagh Cup,Christy Ring Cup,Nicky Rackard Cup andLory Meagher Cup.

The championship was suspended after the completion of the2017 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship. Four counties were scheduled to compete in 2018:

County	Location	Stadium	Province	Position in2017 Championship	First year in championship	In championship since	Championship Titles	Last Championship Title
Antrim	Belfast	Corrigan Park	Ulster	Champions	1900	1989	57	2017
Armagh	Armagh	Athletic Grounds	Ulster	Runners-up	1946	2007	0	—
Derry	Derry	Celtic Park	Ulster	Champions (Ulster Senior Hurling Shield)	1901	2018	4	2001
Down	Newry	Páirc Esler	Ulster	Semi-finals	1905	1989	4	1997

County	Location	Stadium	Province	Position in2017 Championship	First year in shield	In shield since	Championship Titles	Last Championship Title
Donegal	Ballybofey	MacCumhaill Park	Ulster	Semi-finalists	2016	2018	3	1932
Fermanagh	Enniskillen	Brewster Park	Ulster	Semi-finalists (Ulster Senior Hurling Shield)	2016	2016	0	-
Monaghan	Clones	St Tiernach's Park	Ulster	Semi-finalists (Ulster Senior Hurling Shield)	2016	2016	2	1915
Tyrone	Omagh	Healy Park	Ulster	Runners-up (Ulster Senior Hurling Shield)	2016	2016	0	-

The number of years that each county has played in the Ulster SHC between 1900 and 2023. A total of 11 counties have competed in at least one season of the Ulster SHC. Antrim have participated in the most championships. The counties inbold participate in the2023 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship.

Year	Debutants	Total
1900	Antrim	1
1901	Derry	1
1902	None	0
1903	Donegal	1
1904	None	0
1905	Down	1
1906-07	None	0
1908	Cavan,Fermanagh	2
1909	Monaghan	1
1910-45	None	0
1946	Armagh	1
1947-97	None	0
1998	London	1
1999	None	0
2000	New York	1
2001-07	None	0
2008	Tyrone	1
2009-	None	0
Total		11

The following teams have competed in the Ulster Championship for at least one season.

• Gold – All-Ireland champions
• Silver – All-Ireland runners-up

• 1929Antrim declared champions –Donegal disqualified
• 1901:Antrim defeatedDerry 41 points to 12 points – exact score not given

County	Titles	Runners-up	Years won	Years runner-up
Antrim	58	11	1900,1901, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1907, 1909,1910,1911, 1913,1916,1924,1925,1926,1927,1928,1929,1930,1931,1933,1934,1935,1936,1937,1938,1939,1940,1943,1944,1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1989,1990,1991,1993,1994,1996,1998,1999,2002,2003,2004,2005,2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017	1902, 1906, 1914, 1915, 1923, 1932, 1941, 1992, 1995, 1997, 2000
Down	4	20	1942,1992,1995,1997	1930, 1939, 1940, 1943, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2015
Derry	4	8	1902,1908,2000,2001	1901, 1907, 1931, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2012, 2014
Donegal	3	12	1906,1923,1932	1903, 1904, 1905, 1910, 1924, 1925, 1929, 1933, 1934, 1937, 1938, 1945
Monaghan	2	5	1914,1915	1909, 1911, 1913, 1916, 1944
Cavan	0	6	—	1908, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1935, 1936
Armagh	0	4	—	1946, 2011, 2016, 2017
New York	0	1	—	2006

Antrim's historic domination (only 2 finals have not featured the county, 1908 and 2001) has led over time to periods of uncompetitive competitions, and the championship was not played at all between 1950 and 1988. However, there have been periods when this domination has made way for periods of intense rivalry, notably between Antrim and Monaghan in the 1910s, between Antrim and Down in the 1990s, and between Antrim and Derry in the early 2000s.

The2001 Championship was unique in terms of being the only final since the reactivation of the Championship in 1988 which did not feature Antrim, as Derry defeated Down atCasement Park. Equally of note, Antrim have won every final since (albeit one on replay), their longest period of continuous success since 1988.

Province	Titles	Runners-up	Total
Ulster	71	66	137
North America	0	1	1

County	Title(s)	Runners-up	Years won	Years runner-up
Donegal	1	0	2016	—
Derry	1	0	2017	—
Monaghan	0	1	—	2016
Tyrone	0	1	—	2017

Legend

• 1st – Champions
• 2nd – Runners-up
• SF/QF – Semi-finals/Quarter-finals

For each year, the number of teams (in brackets) are shown.

Team	2000 (5)	2001 (5)	2002 (5)	2003 (5)	2004 (5)	2005 (5)	2006 (5)	2007 (5)	2008 (10)	2009 (10)	2010 (10)	2011 (8)	2012 (4)	2013 (4)	2014 (5)	2015 (5)	2016 (4)	2017 (4)	Years
Antrim	2nd	SF	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	1st	18
Armagh	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	QF	QF	QF	QF	2nd	QF	QF	QF	QF	2nd	2nd	11
Cavan	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	R1	R1	R1	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3
Derry	1st	1st	SF	2nd	SF	SF	SF	SF	SF	SF	QF	QF	2nd	SF	2nd	SF	SF	—	17
Donegal	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	R2	R2	R1	PR	—	—	QF	QF	—	SF	7
Down	SF	2nd	2nd	SF	2nd	2nd	SF	2nd	2nd	2nd	2nd	SF	SF	2nd	SF	2nd	SF	SF	18
Fermanagh	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	R1	R2	R1	PR	—	—	—	—	—	—	4
London	SF	SF	QF	QF	QF	QF	QF	SF	SF	QF	SF	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	11
Monaghan	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	QF	R1	R2	QF	—	—	—	—	—	—	4
New York	QF	QF	SF	SF	SF	SF	2nd	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	7
Tyrone	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	R2	R1	R2	PR	—	—	—	—	—	—	4

Bold indicates years reached to final.

Team	No.	Years in Semi-finals
Antrim	18	2000, 2001,2002,2003,2004,2005,2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017
Down	18	2000,2001,2002, 2003,2004,2005, 2006,2007,2008,2009,2010, 2011, 2012,2013, 2014,2015, 2016, 2017
Derry	15	2000,2001, 2002,2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009,2012, 2013,2014, 2015, 2016
New York	5	2002, 2003, 2004, 2005,2006
London	5	2000, 2001, 2007, 2008, 2010
Armagh	3	2011,2016,2017
Donegal	1	2017

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

• 1900s: 7 forAntrim (1900, 1901, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1907, 1909)
• 1910s: 4 forAntrim (1910, 1911, 1913, 1916)
• 1920s: 6 forAntrim (1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929)
• 1930s: 9 forAntrim (1930, 1931, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939)
• 1940s: 8 forAntrim (1940, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949)
• 1980s: 1 forAntrim (1989)
• 1990s: 7 forAntrim (1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999)
• 2000s: 8 forAntrim (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009)
• 2010s: 8 forAntrim (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017)

• Most championships
  • 58,Antrim (1900,1901, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1907, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1913, 1916, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004,2005,2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017)
• Most second-place finishes
  • 20,Down (1930, 1939, 1940, 1943, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005,2007,2008,2009,2010,2013,2015)
• Most semi-final finishes (since 2000)
  • 10,Derry (2002, 2004, 2005, 2006,2007,2008,2009,2013,2015,2016)
• Most quarter-final finishes (since 2000)
  • 8,Armagh (2007,2008,2009,2010,2013,2014,2015,2016)
• Most round 2 finishes
  • 2,Donegal (2008,2009)
  • 2,Tyrone (2008,2010)
• Most round 1 finishes
  • 3,Cavan (2008,2009,2010)
• Most preliminary round finishes
  • 1,Donegal (2011)
  • 1,Fermanagh (2011)
  • 1,Tyrone (2011)

The most one sided Ulster finals:

• 35 points – 1906:Donegal 5-21 - 0-01Antrim
• 29 points –1901:Antrim 0-41 - 0-12Derry
• 28 points – 1930:Antrim 10-04 - 2-00Down
• 27 points – 1935:Antrim 7-09 - 0-03Cavan
• 26 points –2007:Antrim 2-24 - 0-04Down

3 teams of the 4 who have won the Ulster championship have ever successfully defended the title. These are:

• Antrim on 44 attempts out of 58 (1901, 1904, 1905, 1910, 1911, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015, 2016, 2017)
• Derry on 1 attempts out of 4 (2001)
• Monaghan on 1 attempts out of 2 (1915)

• Longest gaps between successive Ulster titles:
  • 92 years:Derry (1908–2000)
  • 50 years:Down (1942–1992)
  • 40 years:Antrim (1949–1989)
  • 17 years:Donegal (1906–1923)
• Longest gaps between successive Ulster finals:
  • 67 years:Derry (1931–1998)
  • 65 years:Armagh (1946–2011)
  • 46 years:Down (1943–1989)
  • 40 years:Antrim (1949–1989)
  • 28 years:Monaghan (1916–1944)
  • 23 years:Derry (1908–1931)
  • 18 years:Cavan (1908–1926)
  • 17 years:Donegal (1910–1923)

• Longest active gaps since an Ulster title:
  • 109 years:Monaghan (1915–)
  • 92 years:Donegal (1932–)
  • 27 years:Down (1997–)
  • 23 years:Derry (2001–)
  • 7 years:Antrim (2017–)
• Longest active gaps since an Ulster final appearance:
  • 88 years:Cavan (1936–)
  • 80 years:Monaghan (1944–)
  • 79 years:Donegal (1945–)
  • 18 years:New York (2006–)
  • 10 years:Derry (2014–)
  • 9 years:Down (2015–)
  • 7 years:Antrim (2017–)
  • 7 years:Armagh (2017–)

• Antrim (28 games): The record for the longest unbeaten run stands at 28 games held by Antrim. It began with a 5–19 to 2–11 win againstNew York in the semi-final of the2002 championship and is still ongoing.

Captains with 2 titles or more.

• All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
  • Connacht Senior Hurling Championship
  • Leinster Senior Hurling Championship
  • Munster Senior Hurling Championship

• Ulster Senior Hurling Championship
• Ulster GAA inter-county hurling competitions
• Senior inter-county hurling competitions
• 1901 establishments in Ireland
• 2018 disestablishments in Ireland
• Recurring sporting events established in 1901
• Recurring sporting events disestablished in 2018

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