The Carlow hurling season has come to an end following last weekend’s Leinster fixtures. A defeat to Antrim sealed their fate, resulting in the Barrowsiders being relegated to the Joe McDonagh Cup for next year.
Throughout this campaign, Carlow managed to secure one point from a draw against Kilkenny, while suffering losses in their other four matches. This outcome has reignited the debate on the relegation policies within the Leinster Championship. Critics point out the disparity between provinces, noting that Tipperary, despite finishing with a single point in the Munster Championship, will still compete at the same level next year. They argue that Leinster teams are disadvantaged by not having the opportunity to regularly play against top-tier teams.
However, Carlow manager Tom Mullally believes that the privilege of competing in the Leinster Championship must be earned. “We can’t have it cheaply either. We have to earn the right to be there,” Mullally stated. “Whether competitions have to happen before the Leinster Championship or whatever. In football as well as anybody can kind of win the Sam Maguire. It’s probably limited to who can win the Liam McCarthy. We’d love to, Carlow the followers want to follow the senior hurlers and senior footballers on the biggest days against the best teams. They’re where you gain your energy and your traction to keep the game moving forward.”
Reflecting on the season, Mullally added, “For us now this finishes the season. But we’ve had some highs along the way this year too. So we’d have to be grateful for them and kind of take those with us.”
As Carlow looks ahead to competing in the Joe McDonagh Cup next season, the team and its supporters remain can look back at the joy winning the same competition brought the county in 2023, and can hope for a repeat.
