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Armagh player Aimee and Blaithín Mackin and Down player Natalie McKibbin were just some of the stars from the competing counties who gathered at Croke Park today, 29 May to officially launch the 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Football Championships.
Sunday 13 August will see the 50th TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship Final take place in Croke Park.
The captains of the 1974 All-Ireland Senior Final teams – Tipperary’s Kitty Ryan-Savage and Offaly’s Agnes Gorman – joined current players at Croke Park today to launch the 2023 campaign.
The very first All-Ireland Senior Final, won by Tipperary, was played in Durrow, county Laois, in 1974. To acknowledge this, TG4’s Peil na mBan Beo lead anchor Máire Ní Bhraonáin was joined at Durrow Castle recently by Aimee Mackin (Armagh), Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh (Kerry), Maria Reilly (Mayo) and Niamh O’Sullivan, from TG4 All-Ireland Senior champions Meath, for a promotional photoshoot.
Intermediate representatives Síofra Ní Chonaill (Clare) and Amy Hamill (Monaghan) were also present, alongside Junior players Claire Dunne (Sligo) and Ruth Bermingham (Carlow), to help launch the 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Championships.
At Croke Park today, a host of leading players were also present as the countdown to what promises to be a spectacular season of Championship football continues.
TG4 has been the title sponsor of the All-Ireland Ladies Football Championships since 2001 and the partnership has evolved into one of the most recognised and innovative in world sport.
In 2022, TG4 announced a five-year extension of its sponsorship of the All-Ireland Ladies Football inter-county championships, with this deal set to last until the conclusion of the 2027 season.
With the 2023 TG4 Provincial Championships coming to an end yesterday, the groups for the All-Ireland Senior and Intermediate Championships have been populated.
At Senior level, defending champions Meath, aiming for a third successive TG4 All-Ireland Senior title, will look to regroup after losing the Leinster Final to Dublin, and the Royal County now find themselves alongside Ulster champions Donegal, and Waterford, in Group B of the All-Ireland series.
Group A features Connacht champions Mayo, Ulster runners-up Armagh, and Laois, while Leinster champions Dublin, Lidl National League Division 1 champions Kerry, who lost to Cork in yesterday’s Munster Final, and Cavan will play in Group C.
Group D is made up of Munster champions Cork, Connacht runners-up Galway, and Tipperary.
In the Intermediate Championship, 2021 and 2022 All-ireland Finalists Wexford lost to Kildare in yesterday’s Leinster Final, and are pitted with Connacht champions Roscommon, and Monaghan, in Group C.
Kildare are in Group A with Leitrim and Louth, with Clare, Tyrone, Offaly and Wexford in a four-team Group B.
In Group D, newly-crowned Ulster Intermediate champions Antrim, who were the 2022 TG4 All-Ireland Junior winners, will battle it out with Longford and Westmeath.
In the Senior and Intermediate Championships, two teams will emerge from each group to contest the quarter-finals, with the top two teams in each of the Junior groups progressing to the semi-finals.
The 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Championships will commence over the weekend of 10/11 June, with five Intermediate fixtures down for decision.
The TG4 Senior Championship is due to get underway on Saturday 17 June, with the Junior Championship roaring into life on Sunday 18 June.
The 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship semi-finals will be played as a double-header at Semple Stadium in Thurles, county Tipperary, on Saturday 29 July.
The 50th year of the Ladies Gaelic Football Association, which was founded in Thurles on July 18, 1974, will officially commence on 18 July 2023.
The 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Finals will be staged as a triple-header once again at Croke Park on Sunday 13 August, with the Junior Final at 11.45am, followed by the Intermediate decider at 1.45pm and the Senior Final at 4pm.
Peil na mBan Beo will be available to audiences globally on the TG4 Player at www.tg4.ie and on the TG4 Mobile and Smart TV App.
Former Galway star Máire Ní Bhraonáin will lead TG4’s Peil na mBan Beo coverage once again for the forthcoming Championship season. The commentary team will be headed up by Brian Tyers.
They will be joined by expert panellists including former Cork TG4 All-Ireland Championship winners Rena Buckley and Rhóna Ní Bhuachalla, ex-Waterford ace Michelle Ryan, Dublin All-Ireland winners Sorcha Furlong and Sinéad Finnegan, Wicklow’s Niamh Russell and current Donegal player, Emer Gallagher.
TG4’s coverage will be produced by Waterford-based production company, Nemeton TV.
The LGFA and TG4 are also delighted to confirm that all other games that are not being televised in the TG4 All-Ireland Championships will be available to view via the LGFA’s live-streaming service. Visit lgfaseason2023 for full details.
Speaking on behalf of TG4, Director General Alan Esslemont said: “Agus muid ag tús comórtais eile Craoibhe, tá TG4 thar a bheith bródúil as ár gcomhpháirtíocht leis an LGFA mar urra agus mar chraoltóir ar Chraobhacha na hÉireann i bPeil na mBan. Samhradh stairiúil atá romhainn agus muid ag tabhairt aghaidh ar an 50ú Cluiche Ceannais Sinsir agus is ábhar sásaimh agus bróid dúinn go raibh baint thábhachtach ag TG4 leis an dul chun cinn atá á dhéanamh ag an spórt iontach seo.
“There is so much to look forward to in this year’s TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Football Championships at all levels - Junior, Intermediate and Senior. The quality of inter-county football increases every year, as does the fierce rivalry and, from the evidence of this year’s Lidl National Leagues, we can expect one of the most open and competitive Senior Championships ever. The prize this year is the truly momentous and historic honour of becoming the winners of the 50th Senior All-Ireland Championship Final.
“My admiration for the women and men who have built the LGFA knows no bounds. It is truly the key institution of women’s sport in Ireland and has been a pioneering leader in the long march towards parity of esteem with male sport. We see some progress in this direction but deep-rooted biases are always difficult to shift. As a minority language broadcaster, I believe that TG4 understands that struggle for some kind of societal equality and the solidarity between the two organisations is very strong.
“That solidarity is very much founded on the strength of the partnership relationship which the LGFA has created with TG4 and the truly historic role which Chief Executive, Helen O’ Rourke, has played in building and maintaining that partnership. I also salute Uachtarán Mícheál Naughton, all the fantastic staff at the LGFA and everyone in club, county, provincial and national management structures who are driving Peil na mBan forward towards its 50th Senior Final and into its 50th year.
“Ba mhaith liom buíochas freisin a ghlacadh le gach duine i TG4 agus i Nemeton as a saothar seachtainiúil ag cur clúdach spóirt den chéad scoth ar fáil ar TG4 agus guím gach rath ar na foirne agus a lucht leanta a bheidh páirteach i gCraobhacha TG4 2023.”
Mícheál Naughton, President of the Ladies Gaelic Football Association, commented: “We’ve already been treated to some spectacular action throughout the Lidl National Leagues and the TG4 Provincial Championships – and now it’s almost time for the 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Championships to get underway.
“As we prepare to enter the 50th year of the Ladies Gaelic Football Association, August 13th at Croke Park will be an historic day, as we will crown our All-Ireland Senior champions for a 50th time.
“There have been some outstanding moments of history throughout the previous 49 Senior Championship campaigns and countless legends created. As we prepare for our 50th Senior Championship season, we can look ahead to what looks like a wide-open race, with a number of contenders starting the TG4 All-Ireland series with a genuine sense that they can finish it with the Brendan Martin Cup.
“We’re also looking forward to brilliant Football in the Intermediate and Junior Championships, with the teams in these competitions battling it out for the national silverware on offer and the chance to compete at a higher Championship grade.
“Along every step of the way, TG4 will be with us, as they have been since 2001. TG4’s commitment and dedication to Ladies Gaelic Football has helped to elevate our sport to new heights and it’s a partnership that continues to grow and evolve.
“We were delighted to sign a long-term extension of our partnership in 2022, which will take us up to the conclusion of the 2027 season.
“Today, we are delighted to have the respective team captains, Kitty Ryan-Savage from Tipperary and Offaly’s Agnes Gorman, with us from that very first Senior Final in 1974. Ladies Gaelic Football has enjoyed tremendous growth since then and we’re anticipating bumper attendances at the various venues along the road to Croke Park in August.
“Once again, and as we make our way through the Championships, we’re proud to ensure that we can cater for a worldwide audience, via TG4 and also on our live-streaming portal.
“Fans of Ladies Gaelic Football won’t miss a minute of the action, with our 2023 TG4 All-Ireland Junior, Intermediate and Senior Champions set to be crowned on August 13th. Many thanks to TG4 Director General Alan Esslemont, Head of Sport, Rónán Ó Coisdealbha and the entire TG4 team for their continued support of Ladies Gaelic Football.
“As always, we need the help of our clubs and counties to ensure that our inter-county players receive the support in the stands and from the terraces that they richly deserve throughout the Championship season.”
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2023 TG4 All-Ireland Championship groupings
Senior:
Group A: Mayo, Armagh, Laois
Group B: Donegal, Meath, Waterford
Group C: Dublin, Kerry, Cavan
Group D: Cork, Galway, Tipperary
Intermediate:
Group A: Kildare, Leitrim, Louth
Group B: Clare, Tyrone, Offaly, Wicklow
Group C: Roscommon, Wexford, Monaghan
Group D: Antrim, Longford, Westmeath
Junior:
Group A: Sligo, Kilkenny, Limerick, Down
Group B: Derry, Carlow, London, Fermanagh
