GAA All-Ireland Hurling Final Odds

Gambling

02 August 2023

So, after all the toing and froing, Limerick did what they have been doing for a few years now, they came strong in the latter stages of the competition and were too good in the latter half of the final to cement their authority on Kilkenny and the hurling landscape by claiming their fourth consecutive All-Ireland championship.

No sooner had the excellent John Keenan blown his final whistle than talk turned to the 'Drive For Five'. So,we thought that while the players, management and supporters are entitled to enjoy this one for another while now, we might have a look at what betting sites are saying for next year.

A reminder that the provincial winners progress directly to the semi-finals, the third-placed teams in the round-robin phases play the winner and runner-up of the Joe McDonogh Cup respectively in the preliminary quarter-finals with provincial runners-up awaiting the pair that come through those inexplicable fixtures in the quarter-finals.

So here’s what the betting apps are offering for next year's Championship.

Limerick Odds-On For Five-In-A-Row

No team goes on forever but bookmakers rightly make Limerick favourites for next year, Bet365 offering the best price on offer at present of 8/11.

Compared to how short they were after winning the National League this year, that is not a bad price about one of the best teams of all time, if you’re willing to play at such odds and wait a year for the payout.

Incidentally, the Cork team that completed their four-in-a-row in 1944 were derailed in the Munster final the following season and it is most likely to be a provincial partner that will do for Limerick.

It is natural when you are hearing this all the time in Leinster for them to get defensive, but no one can argue the differences in depth with a straight face and once again, the evidence is very strong about Cork, Clare, Tipperary and even Waterford being closer top toppling John Kiely’s men than anyone else.

That is a real tightrope for Kiely and Paul Kinnerk to walk and it must be remembered that their men were one point away from not qualifying from Munster at all.

One actual point less scored or one more conceded against Cork and Tipperary, and we would be writing their epitaphs.

Injuries have been a factor in the past two years and yet they have kept Liam MacCarthy clad in green. Cian Lynch had been out for most of that period but got himself in prime condition for this year’s final when he was outstanding.

Sean Finn, Declan Hannon and Richie English are at various stages of convalescence however and there is mileage on the clock all round. Maybe that is why the injuries are coming. As well as that, teams have caught up in terms of conditioning.

On the other side of the ledger however is the motivation that will undoubtedly exist about making history. I don’t think it is something this group will shy away from. In one sense, you have nothing to prove. Four-in-a-row and five in six seasons. Look upon it as an opportunity and nothing else.

And obviously, they are supremely talented all over the pitch as well as possessing of bullet-proof belief borne out of emerging unscathed from countless close shaves.

With Limerick, it’s about body and mind. If those are right, they will take serious stopping.

Cats Guaranteed Progression

That the best price about second favourites Kilkenny is the 8/1 offered by BoyleSports tells of how strongly fancied Limerick are and there are no surprises there.

I suppose as runners-up the last two seasons, they deserve to be next in line. This doesn’t mean they are the second best team in the country – nothing like it, I would venture. But the current structure gives them a great chance.

They might not have won an All-Ireland since 2015 – an indication of their fall from the halcyon days and Limerick’s rise – but they are Leinster champions the past four seasons now.

They still optimise their talent base and Derek Lyng’s first season since taking over from Brian Cody was an unqualified success.

They snatched the Bob O’Keeffe Cup with that dramatic injury-time goal from Cillian Buckley. It was peak Kilkenny....never say die.

You don’t write men of calibre of TJ Reid off but he is closing in on the end of his career and not the force of old. And yet, whenever he retires, his loss will be monumental because he remains very influential. I would certainly be trying to get him to stay another year if I were Lyng.

That Richie Hogan, recently-married pair Walter Walsh and Buckley, and Padraig Walsh are the go-to subs isn’t a hugely positive sign though and the age profile just isn’t great.

Tom Phelan was outstanding in the All-Ireland final though and Lyng will surely have to think about bringing some of his 2022 All-Ireland-winning U20s through, led by Billy Drennan.

Because for all the ferocity and stubbornness they showed in the final, and the benefits of not having to be at a level of preparation for May that the Munster teams must, they aren’t good enough.

Munster Bearpit Tough To Predict

When Kilkenny were dethroned by Tipperary in 2010 it didn’t come out of the blue. Tipp had brought the fire 12 months previously and were undoubtedly unlucky when Kilkenny got that generous penalty award.

The dangers for Limerick come in Munster. Clare (9/1) have been their nearest challengers the past two years and actually beat them this term but a combination of poor conversion rate, individual errors and the stupendous reflexes denied them in the two major games they lost - the Munster final by a point to Limerick, the All-Ireland semi-final by three to Kilkenny.

Tipperary (10/1) made ground under Liam Cahill but went out tamely to Galway in the quarter-final. Don’t expect them to be as far forward early in the year, to use a racing term. Cahill has a better idea of what he has now and can leave a bit in the tank.

Waterford are 20/1 with GAA betting sites and there has been plenty of negative commentary about them under Davy Fitzgerald but they did defeat Tipperary in the Munster Championship and only failed by two points against Limerick, when they should really have won. A lot of Waterford’s best players have a lot of hurling done, however.

Cork made huge strides this year and that is reflected in their price of 10/1. Unlike 12 months previously, they failed to qualify for the knockout stages but so many problems were addressed in terms of defensive structure, work rate, physicality and intensity and mental strength.

There is plenty more talent coming through and Patrick Horgan and Seamus Harnedy have shown they still have plenty to offer, Robbie O'Flynn, Mark Coleman and Alan Connolly should all be back next season too.

Cork and Clare would be the two for me to emerge from Munster with Limerick but it’s literally a hop of the ball.

Galway Fail To Deliver Again

What can you say about Galway? The only thing consistent about them is their inconsistency. And that is within games, not from game to game. For 15 or 20 minutes, they look fantastic, then they disappear for 20.

Conor Whelan was magnificent this season, as were the Mannion brothers and Kevin Cooney left a good impression. But they need more and I wouldn’t back them at the best-priced 9/1. Or double it. But they are in Leinster and could easily be in an All-Ireland semi-final.

As for who will come out of Leinster with them? Your guess is as good as mine. It was Dublin (100/1) this time but they were blessed Wexford (100/1) couldn’t hit a barn door.

The Model County will have a new manager this year. They beat Kilkenny, remember, to avoid relegation and send Westmeath, who had taken their scalp, down instead. Newly-promoted Carlow are 5,000/1 to go all the way. Their aim will be one win and survival.