McKenna Cup won't have mid-December throw-in
November 23, 2018
Tyrone's Matthew Donnelly holds off Hugh McFadden of Donegal during their side's Dr McKenna Cup final clash at the Athletic Grounds.
©INPHO/Jonathan Porter.
The 2019 Dr McKenna Cup will get underway on Sunday, December 30.
There had been speculation that the Ulster Council would start the pre-season football competition in mid-December - Leinster GAA have already fixed O’Byrne Cup games for December 8 and 15 - in a bid to avoid the fixtures pile-up which happened earlier this year due to inclement weather, but they have decided to hold off until after Christmas when Tyrone will be eligible to return to collective training. The Red Hands' run to this year's All-Ireland final precludes them from lining out until December 29, a day before the McKenna Cup throws in.
The launch of the 2019 Dr McKenna Cup will take place in the Europa Hotel, Belfast on Wednesday week, December 5 at 6.30pm. The event will feature a live draw for the competition groups and semi-finals.
The following dates have been agreed:
30th Dec (Sun): Round 1
6th Jan (Sun): Round 2
9th Jan (Wed): Round 3
13th Jan (Sun): Semi Finals
19th Jan (Sat) Final
The competition will once again include three third level teams - Queen's University, St Mary's University and Ulster University.
Be sure to follow the hoganstand.com match tracker for all the Sunday afternoon provincial club SFC action including the Connacht and Munster finals, plus the Leinster semi-finals.
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