# 2008 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 2008 was the 122nd since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. The first matches of the season were played on 25 May 2008, and the championship ended on 7 September 2008. Kilkenny went into the 2008 championship as defending champions, having won their thirtieth All-Ireland title the previous year.
The championship culminated with the All-Ireland final, held at Croke Park, Dublin. The match was contested by Kilkenny and Waterford. It was their first meeting in the final since 1963. Kilkenny won the game by 3–30 to 1–13. It was their third All-Ireland title in succession and a record thirty-first for the county. Kilkenny overtook Cork with the most All Ireland Titles. A position which they have not lost since.

## Format

The format of the 2008 championship was slightly different from previous formats:
12 counties participated in Tier 1 of the 2008 Championship. These teams were as follows:
* Leinster: Dublin, Kilkenny, Laois, Offaly, Wexford
* Munster: Clare, Cork, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford
* Connacht: Galway (Connacht representative)
* Ulster: Antrim (Ulster champions)
Provincial Championships
The Leinster and Munster championships were played as usual. The Leinster and Munster champions advanced directly to the All-Ireland semi-finals. The Ulster champions advanced to the qualifiers. The Connacht championship was not played. Galway entered the qualifiers as Connacht representatives.
All-Ireland Qualifiers
Phase 1: (1 match) This was a single match between Antrim and Galway.
Phase 2: (2 matches) The winner of the phase 1 game played the team eliminated in the first round of the Leinster Championship. The loser of the phase 1 game played the team eliminated in the first round of the Munster Championship.
Phase 3: (2 matches) This phase consisted of two knock-out games between the beaten provincial semi-finalists in Leinster and Munster. Teams from the same province could not meet in these games.
Phase 4: (2 matches) The winners from phase 2 played the winners from phase 3 in a knock-out format.
All-Ireland Series
Quarter-finals: (2 matches) The defeated Munster and Leinster finalists played the winners of the qualifier phase 4 games.
Semi-finals: (2 matches) The Munster and Leinster champions played the winners of the quarter-finals.
Promotion/relegation
The losing teams from the qualifier phase 2 games played off. The loser of this game played a promotion/relegation play-off against the winners of the Christy Ring Cup.

## Teams
### General information

Thirteen counties will compete in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship: one team in the Connacht Senior Hurling Championship, six teams in the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship, five teams in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship and one team in the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship.
| County | Last provincial title | Last championship title | Position in 2007 Championship |
| Antrim | 2007 | — | Qualifier Group A |
| Clare | 1998 | 1997 | Quarter-finals |
| Cork | 2006 | 2005 | Quarter-finals |
| Dublin | 1961 | 1938 | Qualifier Group B |
| Galway | 1999 | 1988 | Quarter-finals |
| Kilkenny | 2007 | 2007 | Champions |
| Laois | 1949 | 1915 | Qualifier Group A |
| Limerick | 1996 | 1973 | Runners-up |
| Offaly | 1995 | 1998 | Qualifier Group B |
| Tipperary | 2001 | 2001 | Quarter-finals |
| Waterford | 2007 | 1959 | Semi-finals |
| Westmeath | — | — | Champions (Christy Ring Cup) |
| Wexford | 2004 | 1996 | Semi-finals |

### Personal and kits

| Team | Colours | Sponsor | Captain(s) | Manager(s) |
| Team | Colours | Sponsor | Captain(s) | Manager(s) | Antrim | Saffron and white | Creagh Concrete | Paddy Richmond | Terence 'Sambo' McNaughton Dominic McKinley |
| Clare | Saffron and blue | Vodafone | Brian O'Connell | Mike McNamara |
| Cork | Red and white | O2 | John Gardiner | Gerald McCarthy |
| Dublin | Navy and blue | Arnotts | Stephen Hiney | Tommy Naughton |
| Galway | Maroon and white | Supermacs | Ollie Canning | Ger Loughnane |
| Kilkenny | Black and amber | Glanbia | James 'Cha' Fitzpatrick | Brian Cody |
| Laois | Blue and white | The Heritage Hotel | | Damien Fox Niall Rigney |
| Limerick | Green and white | Sporting Limerick | Mark Foley | Richie Bennis |
| Offaly | Green, white and gold | Carroll Cuisine | Kevin Brady | Joe Dooley |
| Tipperary | Blue and gold | Enfer | Eoin Kelly Paul Ormonde | Liam Sheedy |
| Waterford | White and blue | 3 | Michael 'Brick' Walsh | Davy FitzGerald |
| Wexford | Purple and yellow | Wexford Cheddar | Rory Jacob | John Meyler |

## Leinster Senior Hurling Championship

| Quarter-Finals | Quarter-Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Final | Final |
| Dublin | 3-21 | | | | |
| Westmeath | 0-11 | | | | |
| Westmeath | 0-11 | Dublin | 0-19, 1-15 | | |
| | | Wexford | 2-13, 2-15 | | |
| | | | | Wexford | 0-17 |
| | | | | Kilkenny | 5-21 |
| Laois | 2-12 | | | | | Kilkenny | 5-21 |
| Offaly | 4-22 | | | | |
| Offaly | 4-22 | Offaly | 0-12 | | |
| | | Kilkenny | 2-24 | | |

## Munster Senior Hurling Championship

| Quarter-Finals | Quarter-Finals | Quarter-Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Final | Final | Final |
| | | | Cork | Cork | 1-13 | | | |
| | | | Tipperary | Tipperary | 1-19 | | | |
| | | | | | | Tipperary | Tipperary | 2-21 |
| | | | | | | Clare | Clare | 0-19 |
| | | | Limerick | Limerick | 1-16 | | | |
| Waterford | Waterford | 0-23 | Clare | Clare | 4-12 | | | |
| Clare | Clare | 2-26 | | | | | | |

## Ulster Senior Hurling Championship

| 2nd round | 2nd round | 2nd round | Quarter-Finals | Quarter-Finals | Quarter-Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Final | Final | Final |
| | | | | | | Down | Down | 4-16 | | | |
| | | | | | | London | London | '1-16 | | | |
| | | | Armagh | Armagh | 4-16 | | | | | | |
| London | London | 2-13 | London | London | 2-23 | | | | | | |
| Tyrone | Tyrone | 1-06 | | | | | | | Down | Down | 2-16 |
| | | | | | | | | | Antrim | Antrim | 3-18 |
| | | | | | | Antrim | Antrim | 2-17 | | | |
| | | | | | | Derry | Derry | 1-12 | | | |
| | | | Derry | Derry | 7-23 | | | | | | |
| Donegal | Donegal | 1-14 | Monaghan | Monaghan | 3-13 | | | | | | |
| Monaghan | Monaghan | 1-15 | | | | | | | | | |
2008 marked the first time in decades that all nine Ulster counties (plus London) competed in the Ulster championship.
Due to the historical strength of Antrim and the relative strength of Down, and more recently Derry and Armagh, a system of seeding was used to prevent one-sided matches. The success of the format was indicated by two 'underdog' victories, for Monaghan over Donegal, and London over Armagh, and a number of close matches. However, Antrim retained the trophy beating Down in the final.

## All-Ireland qualifiers

| Phase 1 | Phase 1 | Phase 1 |
| Antrim | Antrim | 1-10 |
| Galway | Galway | 6-21 |
| Phase 2+3 | Phase 2+3 | Phase 4 | Phase 4 | Finals |
| Waterford | 6-18 | | | |
| Antrim | 0-15 | | | |
| Antrim | 0-15 | Waterford | 2-18 | |
| | | Offaly | 0-18 | |
| Limerick | 0-18 | Offaly | 0-18 | |
| Offaly | 3-19 | | | |
| Offaly | 3-19 | | | Waterford |
| | | | | Cork |
| Galway | 1-26 | | | | Cork |
| Laois | 0-09 | | | |
| Laois | 0-09 | Galway | 2-15 | |
| | | Cork | 0-23 | |
| Cork | 1-17 | Cork | 0-23 | |
| Dublin | 0-15 | | | |

## All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

| Quarter-Finals July 27 | Quarter-Finals July 27 | Semi-Finals August 10 / August 17 | Semi-Finals August 10 / August 17 | Final September 7 | Final September 7 |
| | | Kilkenny | 1-23 | | |
| | | Cork | 0-17 | | |
| Clare | 2-17 | Cork | 0-17 | | |
| Cork | 2-19 | | | | |
| Cork | 2-19 | | | Kilkenny | 3-30 |
| | | | | Waterford | 1-13 |
| | | Waterford | 1-20 | | |
| | | Tipperary | 1-18 | | |
| Wexford | 3-15 | Tipperary | 1-18 | | |
| Waterford | 2-19 | | | | |

## Championship statistics
### Scoring

* Top scorer from play in the championship: John Mullane for Waterford 2-21
* First goal of the championship: Brian Carroll for Offaly against Laois (Leinster quarter-final)
* Last goal of the championship: Eoin Kelly for Waterford against Kilkenny (All-Ireland final)
* First hat-trick of the championship: Joe Bergin for Offaly against Limerick (All-Ireland qualifier)
* Widest winning margin: 26 points
** Waterford 6-21 : 1-10 Antrim (All-Ireland qualifier)
* Most goals in a match: 7
** Antrim 1-10 : 6-21 Waterford (All-Ireland qualifier)
** Laois 4-18 : 3-11 Carlow (Relegation final)
* Most points in a match: 49
** Clare 2-26 :0-23 Waterford (Munster quarter-final)
* Most goals by one team in a match: 6
** Waterford 6-21 : 1-10 Antrim (All-Ireland qualifier)
** Galway 6-21 : 0-15 Antrim (All-Ireland qualifier)
* Most goals scored by a losing team: 3
** Wexford 3-15 : 2-19 Waterford (All-Ireland quarter-final)
** Carlow 3-11 : 4-18 Laois (Relegation final)
* Most points scored by a losing team: 23
** Waterford 0-23 : 2-26 Clare (Munster quarter-final)

### Cards

* Most yellow cards: Waterford (16)
* Fewest yellow cards: Galway (1)
* Most red cards: Antrim, Clare, Cork, Laois and Wexford (1)
* Fewest red cards: Waterford, Kilkenny, Tipperary, Limerick, Dublin, Offaly and Galway (0)

### Overall

* Most goals scored - Waterford (12)
* Most points scored - Waterford (111)
* Most goals conceded - Antrim (12)
* Most points conceded - Waterford (122)
* Fewest goals scored - Antrim and Limerick (1)
* Fewest points scored - Carlow (11)
* Fewest goals conceded - Kilkenny (1)
* Fewest points conceded - Carlow and Westmeath (18)

### Miscellaneous

* Kilkenny win their 31st All-Ireland title to become outright leaders on the all-time roll of honour for the first time in their history.
* Top scorer from play John Mullane didn't win an all star.
* Waterford become the second top-scoring team in a hurling championship season to have a negative score difference (Westmeath 1961)

## Roll of Honour

* Kilkenny - 31 (2008)
* Cork - 30 (2005)
* Tipperary - 25 (2001)
* Limerick - 7 (1973)
* Dublin - 6 (1938)
* Wexford - 6 (1996)
* Offaly - 4 (1998)
* Galway - 4 (1988)
* Clare - 3 (1997)
* Waterford - 2 (1959)
* Laois - 1 (1915)
* London - 1 (1901)
* Kerry - 1 (1891)

## Player facts
### Debutantes

The following players made their début in the 2008 championship:
| Player | Team | Date | Opposition | Game |
| James Burke | Dublin | May 25 | Westmeath | Leinster quarter-final |
| Niall Corcoran | Dublin | May 25 | Westmeath | Leinster quarter-final |
| Noel Costello | Laois | May 25 | Offaly | Leinster quarter-final |
| Joe Dooley | Laois | May 25 | Offaly | Leinster quarter-final |
| Ger Healion | Offaly | May 25 | Laois | Leinster quarter-final |
| Eoin Holohan | Laois | May 25 | Offaly | Leinster quarter-final |
| Niall Holmes | Laois | May 25 | Offaly | Leinster quarter-final |
| Diarmuid Horan | Offaly | May 25 | Laois | Leinster quarter-final |
| Simon Lambert | Dublin | May 25 | Westmeath | Leinster quarter-final |
| Conor Mahon | Offaly | May 25 | Laois | Leinster quarter-final |
| Enda Barrett | Clare | June 1 | Waterford | Munster quarter-final |
| Mark Flaherty | Clare | June 1 | Waterford | Munster quarter-final |
| Richie Foley | Waterford | June 1 | Clare | Munster quarter-final |
| Gary Hurney | Waterford | June 1 | Clare | Munster quarter-final |
| Tadhg Keogh | Clare | June 1 | Waterford | Munster quarter-final |
| Séamus Callanan | Tipperary | June 8 | Cork | Munster semi-final |
| Brian Corry | Cork | June 8 | Tipperary | Munster semi-final |
| Pat Kerwick | Tipperary | June 8 | Cork | Munster semi-final |
| Conor O'Brien | Tipperary | June 8 | Cork | Munster semi-final |
| Paudie O'Sullivan | Cork | June 8 | Tipperary | Munster semi-final |
| Stephen Banville | Wexford | June 14 | Dublin | Leinster semi-final |
| Tommy Dwyer | Wexford | June 14 | Dublin | Leinster semi-final |
| Colm Farrell | Wexford | June 14 | Dublin | Leinster semi-final |
| Peter Kelly | Dublin | June 14 | Wexford | Leinster semi-final |
| Brendan O'Leary | Wexford | June 14 | Dublin | Leinster semi-final |
| David Redmond | Wexford | June 14 | Dublin | Leinster semi-final |
| Paul Ryan | Dublin | June 14 | Wexford | Leinster semi-final |
| James Tonks | Wexford | June 14 | Dublin | Leinster semi-final |
| Richie Hogan | Kilkenny | June 15 | Offaly | Leinster semi-final |
| T.J. Reid | Kilkenny | June 15 | Offaly | Leinster semi-final |
| Paudie O'Dwyer | Limerick | June 22 | Clare | Munster semi-final |
| Joe Canning | Galway | June 28 | Antrim | All-Ireland qualifier |
| Cyril Donnellan | Galway | June 28 | Antrim | All-Ireland qualifier |
| James Skehill | Galway | June 28 | Antrim | All-Ireland qualifier |
| Patrick Bergin | Dublin | July 12 | Cork | All-Ireland qualifier |
| Jamie Nagle | Waterford | July 21 | Offaly | All-Ireland qualifier |
| Paddy Stapleton | Tipperary | August 17 | Waterford | All-Ireland semi-final |

### Retirees

The following players played their last game in the 2008 championship:
| Player | Team | Date | Opposition | Game | Début |
| Colin Lynch | Clare | July 27 | Cork | All-Ireland quarter-final | 1997 |
| Frank Lohan | Clare | July 27 | Cork | All-Ireland quarter-final | 1995 |
| Joe Deane | Cork | August 10 | Kilkenny | All-Ireland semi-final | 1996 |
| Brian Murphy | Cork | August 10 | Kilkenny | All-Ireland semi-final | 2004 |
| Diarmuid O'Sullivan | Cork | August 10 | Kilkenny | All-Ireland semi-final | 1997 |
| Éamonn Corcoran | Tipperary | August 17 | Waterford | All-Ireland semi-final | 1999 |
| Dave Bennett | Waterford | September 7 | Kilkenny | All-Ireland final | 1997 |
| Tom Feeney | Waterford | September 7 | Kilkenny | All-Ireland final | 1995 |
| Paul Flynn | Waterford | September 7 | Kilkenny | All-Ireland final | 1993 |
| James McGarry | Kilkenny | September 7 | Waterford | All-Ireland final | 1999 |

## Top scorers
### Season

| Rank | Player | County | Tally | Total | Matches | Average |
| 1 | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | 7-43 | 64 | 5 | 12.8 |
| 2 | Henry Shefflin | Kilkenny | 1-37 | 40 | 4 | 10.0 |
| 3 | David O'Callaghan | Dublin | 2-33 | 39 | 4 | 9.75 |
| 3 | Joe Canning | Galway | 4-27 | 39 | 3 | 13.0 |
| 5 | Brian Carroll | Offaly | 0-37 | 37 | 4 | 9.25 |
| 6 | Ben O'Connor | Cork | 1-32 | 35 | 5 | 7.0 |
| 7 | Martin Finn | London | 1-29 | 32 | 3 | 10.67 |
| 8 | John Mullane | Waterford | 2-21 | 27 | 5 | 5.4 |
| 9 | Niall Gilligan | Clare | 1-21 | 24 | 4 | 6.0 |
| 9 | Eoin Kelly | Tipperary | 1-21 | 24 | 3 | 8.0 |
| 11 | Eddie Brennan | Kilkenny | 4-09 | 21 | 4 | 5.2 |

### Single game

| Rank | Player | County | Tally | Total | Opposition |
| 1 | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | 2-13 | 19 | Offaly |
| 2 | Joe Canning | Galway | 2-12 | 18 | Cork |
| 3 | Brian Carroll | Offaly | 0-16 | 16 | Laois |
| 4 | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | 1-10 | 13 | Tipperary |
| 5 | David O'Callaghan | Dublin | 1-9 | 12 | Wexford |
| 5 | Ben O'Connor | Cork | 0-12 | 12 | Galway |
| 5 | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | 1-9 | 12 | Kilkenny |
| 5 | Joe Canning | Galway | 2-6 | 12 | Antrim |
| 9 | Henry Shefflin | Kilkenny | 0-11 | 11 | Offaly |
| 9 | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | 1-8 | 11 | Wexford |
| 9 | Henry Shefflin | Kilkenny | 0-11 | 11 | Cork |
| 9 | Joe Bergin | Offaly | 3-2 | 11 | Limerick |
| 13 | Dave Bennett | Waterford | 0-10 | 10 | Clare |
| 13 | David O'Callaghan | Dublin | 0-10 | 10 | Cork |
| 13 | Henry Shefflin | Kilkenny | 1-7 | 10 | Wexford |
| 13 | Mark Flaherty | Clare | 1-7 | 10 | Waterford |
| 13 | Eoin Kelly | Tipperary | 1-7 | 10 | Cork |
| 13 | Eddie Brennan | Kilkenny | 2-4 | 10 | Waterford |
| 19 | Noel Costello | Laois | 0-9 | 9 | Offaly |
| 19 | David O'Callaghan | Dublin | 0-9 | 9 | Wexford |
| 19 | Joe Canning | Galway | 0-9 | 9 | Laois |
| 19 | Brian Carroll | Offaly | 0-9 | 9 | Waterford |
| 19 | David O'Callaghan | Dublin | 1-6 | 9 | Westmeath |
| 19 | Willie Hyland | Laois | 2-3 | 9 | Offaly |
| 19 | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | 2-3 | 9 | Antrim |

### Clean sheets

| Rank | Goalkeeper | County | Clean sheets |
| 1 | P.J. Ryan | Kilkenny | 4 |

## Monthly awards

| Month | Vodafone Player of the Month | Vodafone Player of the Month | Opel GPA Player of the Month | Opel GPA Player of the Month |
| Month | Player | County | Player | County |
| May | Brian Carroll | Offaly | David O'Callaghan | Dublin |
| June | Brian O'Connell | Clare | Brian O'Connell | Clare |
| July | Joe Canning | Galway | Joe Canning | Galway |
| August | Eoin Kelly | Waterford | Derek Lyng | Kilkenny |
| September | Eddie Brennan | Kilkenny | Eoin Larkin | Kilkenny |

## Annual awards
### Vodafone Hurler of the Year

The Vodafone Hurler of the Year award for 2008 was won by Eoin Larkin of Kilkenny.
The shortlist for the Vodafone Hurler of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:
* Eddie Brennan (Kilkenny)
* Eoin Kelly (Waterford)
* Eoin Larkin (Kilkenny)

### Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year

The Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year award for 2008 was won by Joe Canning of Galway.
The shortlist for the Vodafone Young Hurler of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:
* Séamus Callinan (Tipperary)
* Joe Canning (Galway)
* Cathal Naughton (Cork)

### Opel GPA Hurler of the Year

The Opel GPA Hurler of the Year award for 2008 was won by Eoin Larkin of Kilkenny.
The shortlist for the Opel GPA Hurler of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:
* Eddie Brennan (Kilkenny)
* Eoin Larkin (Kilkenny)
* Shane McGrath (Tipperary)

## Managerial changes

The following managerial changes took place during and immediately after the championship.
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Replaced by | Date of appointment | Position |
| Waterford | Justin McCarthy | Resigned | 5 June 2008 | Davy FitzGerald | 9 June 2008 | Defeated in Munster quarter-final |
| Laois | Damien Fox | Resigned | 24 June 2008 | Niall Rigney | 24 June 2008 | Defeated in Leinster quarter-final |
| Limerick | Richie Bennis | Not reappointed | 12 August 2008 | Justin McCarthy | 7 October 2008 | Defeated in All-Ireland qualifiers |
| Dublin | Tommy Naughton | Resigned | 14 September 2008 | Anthony Daly | 23 November 2008 | Defeated in All-Ireland qualifiers |
| Galway | John Meyler | Resigned | 7 October 2008 | Colm Bonnar | 11 November 2008 | Defeated in All-Ireland quarter-final |
| Galway | Ger Loughnane | Not reappointed | 13 October 2008 | John McIntyre | 18 November 2008 | Defeated in All-Ireland qualifiers |

## Stadia

The following stadia were used during the championship:
| County | Stadium | Capacity |
| Dublin | Croke Park | 82,300 |
| Tipperary | Semple Stadium | 55,000 |
| Limerick | Gaelic Grounds | 50,000 |
| Cork | Páirc Uí Chaoimh | 43,500 |
| Galway | Pearse Stadium | 34,000 |
| Antrim | Casement Park | 32,600 |
| Kilkenny | Nowlan Park | 30,000 |
| Meath | Páirc Tailteann | 30,000 |
| Laois | O'Moore Park | 27,000 |
| Carlow | Dr. Cullen Park | 21,000 |
| Waterford | Walsh Park | 17,000 |