The 2009 Nicky Rackard Cup is the 5th annual third-tier hurling

Hurling

Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...

 competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association

Gaelic Athletic Association

The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...

. Seven county

GAA county

A Gaelic Athletic Association county is a geographic region within the Gaelic Athletic Association , controlled by a county board and originally based on the counties of Ireland as they were in 1884. While the counties of Ireland have changed since the foundation of that date, the GAA counties have...

 teams and one regional team participate in the competition. The teams are Fingal

Dublin GAA

Dublin County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association , or Dublin GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Dublin. The county board is also responsible for the Dublin inter-county teams...

, Monaghan

Monaghan GAA

The Monaghan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Monaghan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Monaghan and the Monaghan inter-county football and hurling teams. Separate county boards are responsible for the...

, Louth

Louth GAA

The Louth County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Louth GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Louth. The county board is also responsible for the Louth inter-county teams....

, Sligo

Sligo GAA

The Sligo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Sligo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Sligo...

, Meath

Meath GAA

The Meath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Meath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Meath, as well as for Meath inter-county teams.- Pre-1960s :...

, London

London GAA

The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...

, Armagh

Armagh GAA

The Armagh County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Armagh GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Armagh...

 and Roscommon

Roscommon GAA

For more details of Roscommon GAA see Roscommon Senior Club Football Championship or Roscommon Senior Club Hurling Championship.The Roscommon County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Roscommon GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games...

.
The winners of the competition will be promoted to the Christy Ring Cup 2010

Christy Ring Cup 2010

The 2010 Christy Ring Cup is the sixth staging of Ireland's second-tier hurling competition. Carlow are the current champions, however, they will not get the chance to defend their title due to their promotion to the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship...

.

On 11 July, Meath

Meath GAA

The Meath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Meath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Meath, as well as for Meath inter-county teams.- Pre-1960s :...

 won the cup with a 2-18 to 1-15 win over London

London GAA

The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...

 at Croke Park

Croke Park

Croke Park in Dublin is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association , Ireland's biggest sporting organisation...

.

Structure

The tournament has a double elimination format - each team will play at least two games before being knocked out.

• The eight teams play four Round 1 matches.
  • The winners in Round 1 advance to Round 2A.
  • The losers in Round 1 go into to Round 2B.
• There are two Round 2A matches.
  • The winners in Round 2A advance to the semi-finals.
  • The losers in Round 2A go into to the quarter-finals.
• There are two Round 2B matches.
  • The winners in Round 2B advance to the quarter-finals.
  • The losers in Round 2B go into the relegation playoff.
    • The losers of the relegation playoff are relegated to the Lory Meagher Cup 2010
      Lory Meagher Cup 2010
      The 2010 Lory Meagher Cup is the 2nd annual fourth-tier hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. The teams competing are Cavan, Donegal, Fermanagh, Leitrim, Longford, South Down and Warwickshire. The 2009 champions, Tyrone were promoted to the Nicky Rackard Cup for 2010,...
      
      .
• There are two quarter-final matches between the Round 2A losers and Round 2B winners.
  • The winners of the quarter-finals advance to the semi-finals.
  • The losers of the quarter-finals are eliminated.
• There are two semi-final matches between the Round 2A winners and the quarter-final winners.
  • The winners of the semi-finals advance to the final.
  • The losers of the semi-finals are eliminated.
• The winners of the final win the Nicky Rackard Cup for 2009.

Knockout phase

Match	Date	Venue	Team	Score	Team	Score
Round 1	June 6	Athleague	Roscommon Roscommon GAA For more details of Roscommon GAA see Roscommon Senior Club Football Championship or Roscommon Senior Club Hurling Championship.The Roscommon County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Roscommon GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games...	1-11	Fingal Fingal hurling team The Fingal Hurling Team is a region under the auspice of the Dublin County Board. The team is not a GAA county but does compete at inter-county level...	1-8
Round 1	June 6	Sligo Sligo Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...	Sligo Sligo GAA The Sligo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Sligo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Sligo...	0-10	Meath Meath GAA The Meath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Meath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Meath, as well as for Meath inter-county teams.- Pre-1960s :...	1-23
Round 1	June 6	Armagh Armagh Armagh is a large settlement in Northern Ireland, and the county town of County Armagh. It is a site of historical importance for both Celtic paganism and Christianity and is the seat, for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland, of the Archbishop of Armagh...	Armagh Armagh GAA The Armagh County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Armagh GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Armagh...	0-12	London London GAA The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...	1-19
Round 1	June 6	Dundalk Dundalk Dundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland. It is situated where the Castletown River flows into Dundalk Bay. The town is close to the border with Northern Ireland and equi-distant from Dublin and Belfast. The town's name, which was historically written as Dundalgan, has associations...	Louth Louth GAA The Louth County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Louth GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Louth. The county board is also responsible for the Louth inter-county teams....	1-12	Monaghan Monaghan GAA The Monaghan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Monaghan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Monaghan and the Monaghan inter-county football and hurling teams. Separate county boards are responsible for the...	1-8
Round 2A	June 13	Ruislip Ruislip Ruislip is a suburban area, centred on an old village in Greater London, and is part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.It was formerly also a parish covering the neighbouring areas of Eastcote, Northwood, Ruislip Manor and South Ruislip in the area. The parish appears in the Domesday Book, and...	London London GAA The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...	1-22	Roscommon Roscommon GAA For more details of Roscommon GAA see Roscommon Senior Club Football Championship or Roscommon Senior Club Hurling Championship.The Roscommon County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Roscommon GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games...	1-11
Round 2A	June 13	Navan Navan -People:Navan was the childhood home of Pierce Brosnan, who appeared in the television series Remington Steele and was the fifth film actor to play James Bond. TV personality Hector Ó hEochagáin, and comedians Dylan Moran and Tommy Tiernan also hail from Navan....	Meath Meath GAA The Meath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Meath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Meath, as well as for Meath inter-county teams.- Pre-1960s :...	1-26	Louth Louth GAA The Louth County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Louth GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Louth. The county board is also responsible for the Louth inter-county teams....	0-10
Round 2B	June 13	Sligo Sligo Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...	Sligo Sligo GAA The Sligo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Sligo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Sligo...	0-5	Armagh Armagh GAA The Armagh County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Armagh GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Armagh...	3-19
Round 2B	June 13	Clones Clones Clones is a small town in western County Monaghan, in the 'border area' of the Republic of Ireland. The area is part of the Border Region, earmarked for economic development by the Irish Government due to its currently below-average economic situation...	Monaghan Monaghan GAA The Monaghan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Monaghan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Monaghan and the Monaghan inter-county football and hurling teams. Separate county boards are responsible for the...	2-13	Fingal Fingal hurling team The Fingal Hurling Team is a region under the auspice of the Dublin County Board. The team is not a GAA county but does compete at inter-county level...	1-18
Quarter-final	June 20	Armagh Armagh Armagh is a large settlement in Northern Ireland, and the county town of County Armagh. It is a site of historical importance for both Celtic paganism and Christianity and is the seat, for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland, of the Archbishop of Armagh...	Armagh Armagh GAA The Armagh County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Armagh GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Armagh...	6-26	Roscommon Roscommon GAA For more details of Roscommon GAA see Roscommon Senior Club Football Championship or Roscommon Senior Club Hurling Championship.The Roscommon County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Roscommon GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games...	2-9
Quarter-final	June 20	Swords Swords, Dublin Swords is the county town of Fingal in Ireland. It is about 13 km north of Dublin city centre and is part of its commuter belt.- History :...	Fingal Fingal hurling team The Fingal Hurling Team is a region under the auspice of the Dublin County Board. The team is not a GAA county but does compete at inter-county level...	0-16	Louth Louth GAA The Louth County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Louth GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Louth. The county board is also responsible for the Louth inter-county teams....	1-11
Semi-final	June 27	Ruislip Ruislip Ruislip is a suburban area, centred on an old village in Greater London, and is part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.It was formerly also a parish covering the neighbouring areas of Eastcote, Northwood, Ruislip Manor and South Ruislip in the area. The parish appears in the Domesday Book, and...	London London GAA The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...	1-19	Fingal Fingal hurling team The Fingal Hurling Team is a region under the auspice of the Dublin County Board. The team is not a GAA county but does compete at inter-county level...	2-8
Semi-final	June 27	Navan Navan -People:Navan was the childhood home of Pierce Brosnan, who appeared in the television series Remington Steele and was the fifth film actor to play James Bond. TV personality Hector Ó hEochagáin, and comedians Dylan Moran and Tommy Tiernan also hail from Navan....	Meath Meath GAA The Meath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Meath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Meath, as well as for Meath inter-county teams.- Pre-1960s :...	0-21	Armagh Armagh GAA The Armagh County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Armagh GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Armagh...	1-14
Final	July 11	Croke Park Croke Park Croke Park in Dublin is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association , Ireland's biggest sporting organisation...	London London GAA The London County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or London GAA is one of the county boards outside Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in London...	1-15	Meath Meath GAA The Meath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Meath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Meath, as well as for Meath inter-county teams.- Pre-1960s :...	2-18

Relegation play-off

Date	Venue	Team	Score	Team	Score
June 20	Ballinamore Ballinamore Ballinamore is a small town in County Leitrim, Ireland, from the border with Northern Ireland. It is located on the R202 regional road where it is joined by the R199 and R204. means "mouth of the big ford", and the town is so named because it was the main crossing point of the Yellow River,...	Sligo Sligo GAA The Sligo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Sligo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Sligo...	3-14	Monaghan Monaghan GAA The Monaghan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Monaghan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Monaghan and the Monaghan inter-county football and hurling teams. Separate county boards are responsible for the...	2-9

Monaghan

Monaghan GAA

The Monaghan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Monaghan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Monaghan and the Monaghan inter-county football and hurling teams. Separate county boards are responsible for the...

 are relegated to the Lory Meagher Cup 2010

Lory Meagher Cup 2010

The 2010 Lory Meagher Cup is the 2nd annual fourth-tier hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. The teams competing are Cavan, Donegal, Fermanagh, Leitrim, Longford, South Down and Warwickshire. The 2009 champions, Tyrone were promoted to the Nicky Rackard Cup for 2010,...

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