"Ludicrous"- Shane McGrath gives opinion on potential Hurling League final being moved for Ryder Cup

The prospect of the Ryder Cup coming to Adare Manor in 2027 is already sparking discussion well beyond golf, with the event expected to deliver a major boost to Irish sport and the wider economy.

It will be only the second time the famous competition has been staged in Ireland, and huge numbers of supporters and media from Europe and the United States are expected to descend on Limerick for the three-day event.

With attention set to focus heavily on the region, other sporting bodies are now exploring ways to benefit from the occasion. Among the ideas reportedly being considered by the GAA is the possibility of staging the Division 1A National Hurling League final that same week at the nearby Gaelic Grounds.

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The thinking behind the proposal is to showcase hurling to a new international audience. However, the idea has also drawn criticism, with concerns raised over the practical impact it could have on the GAA calendar.

A shift to September 2027 would present a number of challenges. By that stage, the inter-county season would have been over for almost two months, while the club championship would be at a crucial stage.

Speaking on the RTÉ GAA Podcast, former Tipperary star Shane McGrath said he believed the suggestion was “ludicrous” and argued that there were better ways to promote hurling during Ryder Cup week.

“I can’t make sense of this at all to be honest, I wouldn’t be for it.

You’re smack bang in the middle of knockout club stuff there. Any club that is still involved, there’s not a hope. You couldn’t be asking them to step away from club championship to go and play a league final.

I get where they’re coming from in terms of promotion of the game. If they were really looking for a game to promote, if it’s on around that time I’m sure there would be some serious club games going on around Limerick or north Cork that they could get people to go to.

You get a big Cork championship game, a big Tipp club championship game, and a big Limerick club championship game and have them all on on the same day if they wanted to go see a game of hurling.

I wouldn’t be for the idea of having the league final in September, I think it would be ludicrous to do that to the club championship.”

Any decision to move the league final would almost certainly have significant implications for the club championships in the counties involved. Even so, John Fogarty reported in the Irish Examiner that early discussions around the proposal have so far been positive.

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