# 2023 Christy Ring Cup

The 2023 Christy Ring Cup was the 19th staging of the Christy Ring Cup since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 2005. The competition began on 16 April 2023 and ended in June 2023.
The 2023 Christy Ring Cup was played on a round-robin basis with the top two counties qualifying for the final and the final winner being promoted to the 2nd tier 2024 Joe McDonagh Cup. This was Meath, resulting in an immediate return to the 2nd tier for them following their relegation from the Joe McDonagh in 2022.
The bottom placed team, Mayo, was relegated to the 2024 Nicky Rackard Cup.
Tyrone made their debut in this year's Christy Ring Cup. following their promotion from the Nicky Rackard Cup in 2022.

## Team changes
### To Championship

Relegated from the Joe McDonagh Cup
* Meath
Promoted from the Nicky Rackard Cup
* Tyrone

### From Championship

Promoted to the Joe McDonagh Cup
* Kildare
Relegated to the Nicky Rackard Cup
* Wicklow

## Format
### Format

The 2023 Christy Ring Cup employs a round-robin system, contested within a single group of 6 county teams. At the completion of the round-robin, the top two teams proceed to contest the Christy Ring Cup final.
Aside from the trophy itself, the reward for victory in the cup is promotion to the 2024 Joe McDonagh Cup, with their place in the 2024 Christy Ring Cup taken by the bottom-placed team in that year's Joe McDonagh Cup.
There is no direct entry route to the 2023 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship for 2023 Christy Ring Cup teams.
The bottom team in the group stage are relegated to the 2024 Nicky Rackard Cup, being replaced by the champions of the 2023 Nicky Rackard Cup.

### Teams by province

The participating teams, listed by province, with numbers in parentheses indicating final positions in the 2023 National Hurling League before the championship were:
Britain (1)
* London (23)
Connacht (2)
* Mayo (28)
* Sligo (25)
Leinster (1)
* Meath (18)
Munster (0)
* None participated
Ulster (2)
* Derry (19)
* Tyrone (22) (debut)

## Teams
### General Information

| County | Last Cup Title | Last Provincial title | Last All-Ireland title | Position in 2022 Championship | Appearance |
| Derry | — | 2001 | — | 3rd | 17th |
| Mayo | — | 1909 | — | Runners-up | 15th |
| Meath | 2019 | — | — | 6th (Joe McDonagh Cup) | 13th |
| London | 2012 | — | 1901 | 4th | 11th |
| Sligo | — | — | — | 5th | 4th |
| Tyrone | — | — | — | Champions (Nicky Rackard Cup) | 1st |

### Personnel and kits

| County | Manager | Captain(s) | Sponsor |
| Derry | Johnny McGarvey | Cormac O'Doherty | Errigal Group |
| London | Kevin McMullan | Jack Goulding | Clayton Hotels |
| Mayo | Dave McConn/Tom Phillips | David Kenny | Intersport Elverys |
| Meath | Seoirse Bulfin | Charlie Ennis/Jack Regan | Glenveagh |
| Sligo | Padraig Mannion | Kevin O'Kennedy | Clayton Hotels |
| Tyrone | Michael McShane | Lorcan Devlin | McAleer & Rushe |

## Group stage
### Table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | SF | SA | Diff | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Meath | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4-117 | 5-98 | +16 | 8 | Advance to Knockout Stage |
| 2 | Derry | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8-126 | 10-84 | +36 | 7 | Advance to Knockout Stage |
| 3 | Sligo | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6-97 | 7-110 | -16 | 6 | |
| 4 | London | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13-106 | 8-112 | +9 | 6 | |
| 5 | Tyrone | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 9-95 | 5-113 | -6 | 3 | |
| 6 | Mayo | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3-99 | 8-120 | -39 | 0 | Relegated to Nicky Rackard Cup |

### Round 5
## Knockout stage
### Final

Meath are promoted to the 2024 Joe McDonagh Cup.

## Stadia and locations

| County | Location | Province | Stadium | Capacity |
| Derry | Derry | Ulster | Celtic Park | 22,000 |
| London | South Ruislip | Britain | McGovern Park | 3,000 |
| Mayo | Castlebar | Connacht | MacHale Park | 25,369 |
| Meath | Navan | Leinster | Páirc Tailteann | 11,000 |
| Sligo | Sligo | Connacht | Markievicz Park | 18,558 |
| Tyrone | Omagh | Ulster | Healy Park | 17,636 |

## Statistics
### Top scorers
#### Overall

| Rank | Player | Club | Tally | Total | Matches | Average |
| 1 | Ronan Crowley | London | 2-45 | 51 | 4 | 12.75 |
| 2 | Andrew Kilcullen | Sligo | 2-40 | 46 | 4 | 11.50 |
| 3 | Cormac O'Doherty | Derry | 3-32 | 41 | 4 | 10.25 |
| 4 | Jack Regan | Meath | 1-36 | 39 | 4 | 9.75 |
| 5 | Cormac Philips | Mayo | 0-28 | 28 | 4 | 7.00 |
| 6 | Sean Duffin | Tyrone | 1-23 | 26 | 4 | 6.50 |
| 7 | John Mullan | Derry | 2-14 | 22 | 4 | 5.50 |

### Scoring events

* Widest winning margin: 20 points
** Derry 4-27 - 2-13 Sligo (Round 2)
* Most goals in a match: 6
** Derry 4-27 - 2-13 Sligo (Round 2)
** Tyrone 4-17 - 2-28 London (Round 5)
* Most points in a match: 49
** Sligo 2-26 - 1-23 Mayo (Round 4)
** London 4-19 - 1-30 Derry (Round 4)
* Most goals by one team in a match: 4
** London 4-17 - 1-24 Meath (Round 2)
** Derry 4-27 - 2-13 Sligo (Round 2)
** London 4-19 - 1-30 Derry (Round 4)
** Tyrone 4-17 - 2-28 London (Round 5)
* Most points by one team in a match: 30
** London 4-19 - 1-30 Derry (Round 4)
** Derry 0-30 - 1-11 Mayo (Round 5)
* Highest aggregate score: 64 points
** London 4-19 - 1-30 Derry (Round 4)
* Lowest aggregate score: 39 points
** Tyrone 1-16 - 0-20 Sligo (Round 3)

## Miscellaneous

* Meath won their 1st championship in 4 years, last winning the 2019 Christy Ring Cup.
* Tyrone made their debut in the Christy Ring Cup.
* First-time Christy Ring Cup meetings:
** Tyrone v Derry (Round 1)
** Mayo v Tyrone (Round 2)
** Tyrone v Sligo (Round 3)
** Meath v Tyrone (Round 4)
** Tyrone v London (Round 5)
** Sligo v Meath (Round 5)