Leinster Senior Hurling Championship Round One
Antrim v Dublin (Corrigan Park, Saturday, 2pm)

BACK in 2018, Antrim’s hurlers rounded off their season with a win over Kildare in a playoff that had they lost, would have resulted in a drop from the Joe McDonagh to the third-tier Christy Ring Cup.

Fast-forward five years and the Saffrons are getting set to welcome Dublin to Corrigan Park for their first ever home Leinster Senior Hurling Championship game.

If you wish to be pedantic, then yes, Antrim did have home games in the 2014 and 2015 Leinster Qualifying Group round robin before demotion down to the Christy Ring (then the second tier), but this Saturday represents the first time they have home advantage for the competition proper.

Making the trip to West Belfast is a Dublin side that Antrim will know inside out by this stage, the teams having played each other regularly since the Saffrons’ recent resurgence under Darren Gleeson that has made them a regular fixture in Division One.

Indeed, they met in the 2021 Leinster Championship in Navan, a game that the handful of Antrim fans permitted into Pairc Tailteann due to Covid restrictions would rather forget as the Dubs romped to a victory - highlighting the jump that exists between League and the race for Liam MacCarthy.

Two years on from that and four meetings between the counties since - twice each in Walsh Cup and League with Dublin winning all - Antrim will feel they are in a much better place to put up a challenge as they get ready for their first crack at the Leinster round robin following that 2021 Championship which had reverted to the old knockout system because of the pandemic.

Division One hurling was secured for a fourth-straight year by Antrim last month and with that box ticked, the past month has been all about getting ready for five huge Championship battles ahead.

“I came up to help get Antrim back into the top-tier in the League, bed ourselves in which we have done,” said manager, Darren Gleeson.

“The second thing was the Liam MacCarthy Championship from which Antrim were missing for a few years.

“You’d the new structure of the Leinster Championship and this is the opportunity to play five big Championship games.

“We missed out on that (in 2021) because of Covid and ended up with one shootout match against Dublin in Navan and we genuinely weren’t ready for it at that stage.

“Dublin gave us a harsh lesson that day in surreal circumstances with hardly a body in the place. It’s mad when you think back on that.

“But this has been the main objective all the time: let’s see if we can be competitive over a run of five matches in the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship.”

Since the end of the League, the Saffrons have ramped up preparations with a training camp in Portugal and a recent challenge game against Waterford that Gleeson reports he was more than happy with.

In terms of injuries, aside from long-term absentees Conor McCann, Ciaran Clarke and Daniel McKernan, Niall McKenna picked up an injury midweek and misses out with Seaan Elliott dropping back to wing-forward with older brother Niel on the other flank, while Conor Johnston is selected in the corner.

Elsewhere, there are no real surprises with Niall O'Connor getting the nod in the left corner-back position that has been rotated quite a bit this year.

There won’t have been a great deal needed in terms of a scouting mission for either team ahead of this weekend’s Leinster opener given the regularity of their meetings and both sets of players will know each other inside out at this stage.

Dublin have had Antrim’s number with their off-the-shoulder style and athleticism around the middle third of the field proving to be a puzzle the Saffrons are yet to solve.

Yet there have been signs they have narrowed the gap since that day in Navan as in the two League games, the winning margins have been four and three points.

Their recent meeting in Parnell Park did see the Dubs lead by 10 with 65 minutes played, but Antrim roared back to get to within a score and they had their chances to take something from it.

John Bellew out in front of Conor Johnston at Parnell Park in February
2Gallery

John Bellew out in front of Conor Johnston at Parnell Park in February

“There are no big secrets between the two teams,” Gleeson agrees.

“A lot is going to come down to who has gone up to the Championship pace over the last number of weeks.

“The League match in Parnell Park was game with three different sections: Dublin’s purple patch, a flat patch and then our purple patch.

“They beat us by three that day, but they’ll have players back and we’ll have players back. That was a big ask for us that day with the Dunloy contingent returning, so I wouldn’t judge too much of that League match.”

Dublin have proven to be a match for most teams on their day and indeed, following their win over Antrim two years ago, went out the following day and took out Galway before coming up short in the Leinster final.

There is an argument they have greatly underachieved given their resources and quality with players such as the Burkes - Donal and Conor - Cian Boland, Danny Sutcliffe and Paul Crummey all in their ranks, so this year Micheál Donoghue - who guided his native Galway to the 2017 All-Ireland title - has been drafted in to help steer them forward.

But Antrim have plenty of quality too, highlighted by Dunloy’s run to an All-Ireland Club final and will not be daunted by what lies ahead this week.

“It’s Championship, not just another game in Corrigan Park and knowing it takes more emotionally and physically because mental strength will be tested,” Gleeson insists.

“Dublin will feel they’ve underachieved over the past couple of years after some big wins and getting to the Leinster final, but now they’ve an All-Ireland-winning manager in charge and a serious coaching ticket with a huge amount invested, so they’ll be expecting to get the points off us.”