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I think this issue needs a thread of it’s own at this point.

Over the last number of years club hurling supporters have been got the short end of the straw regarding the fixtures for the knockout stages of the championships compared to football. And at this point it’s time to say enough is enough.

In 2026 the 2 senior hurling quarter finals were once again fixed for 2 separate venues. In comparison the 2 football Q-Finals were fixed as a double header in OCP.

Similarly the 2 hurling semi-finals are AGAIN fixed for 2 separate venues and the 2 football semi-finals are a double header. Where’s the consistency in these fixture decisions?

Cost of course is a major factor for many people at the moment so Offaly GAA are actively pricing people out of seeing our senior semi finals in hurling.

And then we also have Kevin Corrigan doing the county board’s bidding when he described next weekend’s fixtures as “two attractive double headers”. I absolutely disagree with this statement. They would have been attractive double headers if the 2 semi finals were in one venue and the Senior B and Intermediate Finals were in another. As it stands it’s a cheap cash grab by Offaly and is an insult to the many genuine club hurling supporters in the county.

These inconsistencies between the hurling and football knockout fixtures have been going on for too long now and it needs to be called out for the nonsense it is.

Would imagine it's more to do with going back again to pacifying the South Offaly brigade who'd be slow to pass Kilcormac to attend a match, bar their own club were playing and think all the hurling should be in Birr. While OCP is county ground, I'd imagine fixtures people are trying to cover both sides of debate amicably. Ironically, if they were to be even more neutral, and I'm being hyper critical here, the Kilcormac Rynaghs game should've been put down for Birr and Belmont Ballinamere game in OCP. However if that was done the winner of the Birr game would find way to say the Belmont Ballinamere winner would be advantaged in final by playing semi in ocp. I think, no matter what way you roll the dice, as long as Birr and OCP hurling debate lingers, there will be people that will find issues with venues for fixtures at business end of champ.

If you go back to the Rynaghs vs shinrone match I thought there was a great crowd at it.
If that had been played in Tullamore I don't think I don't think the same crowd would have attended.

The pitch in O Connor Park Tullamore will hold up better for a double header if the weather is bad and a lot of rain falls.

Birr in contrast would not survive the same heavy rain at all. It just the way it is. And we learned that in recent years when matches had to be pulled from birr for a double header. The pitch gets soft and ocp whatever way the drainage is, drains better. Then matches are switched and venues changed at short notice.

I like birr as a venue particularly when the stand is full and lends itself to a great atmosphere. Would love to see another county final played in there.
Birr has a fair good standard of stadium for a club. It's as good as many a county ground like Ennis or wicklow for example or even mullingar.