In attendance, from left, Derry hurler Ruairí Ó Mianáin, Dublin Celtic Challenge hurler Callum Dee, Aiste Petraityte, Brand and Sponsorship manager at Electric Ireland, Dublin Celtic Challenge hurler Scott Cassidy Walker and Sligo hurler Tony O'Kelly-Lynch during the launch of the Electric Ireland Celtic Challenge at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile
By John Harrington
The Electric Ireland Celtic Challenge is now down to the knock-out rounds with the quarter-finals taking place this weekend.
37 teams from 32 counties took part in the group phase of what’s one of the most innovative and development hurling initiatives within the GAA Calendar.
Quarter-Finals are performance based with all competing teams now having the chance to win silverware across six graded divisions.
One of the fixtures that catches the eye this weekend is the showdown between Derry and West Cork in the Corn John Scott (Division 2) quarter-final.
The Oak Leafers are a shining example of how developing counties have used the Celtic Challenge to significantly raise their standards.
Ruairí Ó Mianáin, now starring for the Derry seniors, won an U20 All-Ireland ‘B’ championship last year and is part of a generation of young Derry hurlers who have really felt the benefit of competing in the Celtic Challenge.
“The Celtic Challenge was brilliant,” says Ó Mianáin. “It gave you a chance to play competitive, hard games at your own level.
“Whereas when you talk to boys who didn't get to play Celtic Challenge, some of the boys in the Derry senior team now, they said that they would train for three or four months, go out, and get hammered in an Ulster Final and that was their season done.
“There was no pathway to develop players in Derry and there was a bad stigma around hurling because all you did was train and then get beat at underage. Due to that, the talent wasn't feeding through to senior.
“So to have a competition like the Celtic Challenge has been huge for a county like Derry. I think our U20 Ulster Championshp win over Antrim this year showed how important it is that teams get a chance to develop at their own level.
“If you're playing competitive games at your own level then you're going to develop and get better and we've showed that this year.
“That team played Celtic Challenge and last year we won the All-Ireland 'B' Final and a lot of those boys would have played Celtic Challenge.
“It's the reason that Derry underage hurling has been able to be successful to some degree in the past four or five years, because of the Celtic Challenge. “
The full list of Celtic Challenge quarter-final fixtures can be found www.gaa.ie/celticchallenge