NEW DUBLIN BOSS Jim Gavin will begin his senior managerial career with a trip to Carlow for their opening game in next year’s O’Byrne Cup in January 6th.
The pre-season Leinster senior football competition will take on a new format next year with a group round-robin process being implemented.
Dublin will feature in Group B alongside Carlow, Wicklow and DCU with four teams in each of the four groups. Eleven counties, after Kilkenny’s withdrawal, and five third-level sides will be in action.
The full list of the Group B fixtures are:
Jan 6th – Carlow v Dublin, Carlow; Wicklow v DCU, Aughrim.
Jan 9th – Dublin v DCU, Parnell Park; Wicklow v Carlow, Wicklow venue
Jan 13th – Dublin v Wicklow, Parnell Park; Carlow v DCU, Carlow.
In Group A, new Meath manager Mick O’Dowd will be up against Longford, UCD and a Louth side who are will be under the guidance of Aidan O’Rourke next year.
Jan 6th – Longford v Meath, Longford; Louth v UCD, Drogheda.
Jan 9th – Meath v Louth, Navan; Longford v UCD, Killoe.
Jan 13th – Meath v UCD, Navan, Louth v Longford, Drogheda.
In Group C, midland rivals Offaly, Laois and Westmeath will all be in opposition along with Athlone IT.
Jan 6th – Offaly v Laois, Tullamore; Westmeath v Athlone IT, Mullingar.
Jan 9th – Laois v Westmeath, Portlaoise; Offaly v Athlone IT, Gracefield.
Jan 13th – Westmeath v Offaly, Mullingar; Laois v Athlone IT, Portlaoise.
Finally Group D will feature Wexford and Kildare along with third-level setups Dublin IT and Carlow IT.
Jan 6th – Wexford v Dublin IT, Wexford; Kildare v Carlow IT, Newbridge.
Jan 9th – Wexford v Carlow IT, Bellefield; Kildare v Dublin IT, Kildare venue.
Jan 13th – Kildare v Wexford, Newbridge; Carlow IT v Dublin IT, Carlow IT.
The four group winners will then qualify for the O’Byrne Cup semi-finals on January 20th with the final down for decision on January 27th.
In the event of a tie in the group stage, the winners will be decided on (a.) the outcome of the meeting of the two teams in the previous game in the competitions, (b.) score difference, (c.) highest total for and (d.) a play-off.
The 2013 Walsh Cup will operate under it’s normal knockout procedure with the Walsh Shield confined to first round losers only. All-Ireland champions Kilkenny, All-Ireland finalists Galway, Dublin, Offaly, Wexford, Antrim, Laois, Carlow and Westmeath will all be in action.
While UCD, NUI Galway and Dublin IT are the third-level representatives.
The opening round fixtures on January 20th are:
Wexford v Dublin IT, Wexford.
Westmeath v NUI Galway, Mullingar.
Laois v UCD, Portlaoise.
Carlow v Antrim, Carlow.
Then the quarter-final fixtures on January 27th are:
Wexford/Dublin IT v Offaly, Wexford/Tullamore.
Westmeath/NUI Galway v Kilkenny, Mullingar/Kilkenny.
Laois/UCD v Dublin, Portlaoise/Parnell Park.
Carlow/Antrim v Galway, Carlow/Belfast.
The semi-finals of the Walsh Cup will take place on February 3rd and the final is fixed for February 10th.
The details for the 2013 Kehoe Cup will be released in the coming weeks by the Leinster Council. Bord Na Móna will once again be sponsoring next year’s 2013 pre-season competitions in Leinster.
