The 1971 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 84th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The championship began on 16 May 1971 and ended on 5 September 1971.
Cork were the defending champions but were defeated by Limerick in the Munster semi-final. Antrim, who won the All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship in 1970, were promoted to the senior championship after a long absence.
The All-Ireland final was played at Croke Park in Dublin on 5 September 1971 between Tipperary and Kilkenny, in what was their 16th championship meeting overall and a first meeting in the All-Ireland final four years. Tipperary won the match by 5–17 to 5–14 to claim their 22nd All-Ireland title overall and a first title in six years.
Kilkenny's Eddie Keher was the championship's top scorer with 4–43. Tipperary's Michael 'Babs' Keating was the choice for Texaco Hurler of the Year.
The championship
Participating counties
ProvinceCountyMost recent successAll-IrelandProvincialLeinsterDublin19381961KildareKilkenny19691969Laois19151949OffalyWestmeathWexford19681970MunsterClare19141932Cork19701970Limerick19401955Tipperary19651968Waterford19591963ConnachtGalway19231922UlsterAntrim1946BritainLondon1901
Format
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship of 1971 was run on a provincial basis as usual. It was a knockout tournament with pairings drawn at random in the respective provinces – there were no seeds.
Each match was played as a single leg. If a match was drawn there was a replay. If both sides were still level at the end of that game another replay had to take place.
Munster Championship
Quarter-final: (1 match) This was a single match between the first two teams drawn from the province of Munster.
Semi-finals: (2 matches) The winner of the lone quarter-final joined the other three Munster teams to make up the semi-final pairings.
Final: (1 match) The winner of the two semi-finals contested this game.
Leinster Championship
First round: (1 match) This was a single match between two of the 'weaker' teams drawn from the province of Leinster.
Quarter-finals: (2 matches) The winner of the first-round game joined three other Leinster teams to make up the two quarter-final pairings.
Semi-finals: (2 matches) The winners of the two quarter-finals joined Kilkenny and Wexford, who received a bye to this stage, to make up the semi-final pairings.
Final: (1 match) The winner of the two semi-finals contested this game.
All-Ireland Championship
Quarter-final: (1 match) This was a single match between Antrim and Galway, two teams who faced no competition in their respective provinces.
Semi-finals: (2 matches) The winner of the lone quarter-final joined London and the Munster and Leinster champions to make up the semi-final pairings. The provincial champions were drawn in opposite semi-finals.
Final: (1 match) The winner of the two semi-finals contested this game.
Provincial championships
Leinster Senior Hurling Championship First roundQuarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
Munster Senior Hurling Championship Quarter-finalsSemi-finals
Final
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
All-Ireland quarter-finals
All-Ireland semi-finals
All-Ireland Final
Championship statistics
Scoring
Widest winning margin: 34 points Galway 7–24 : 1–8 Antrim (All-Ireland quarter-final) Most goals in a match: 10 Tipperary 5–17 : 5–14 Kilkenny (All-Ireland final) Most points in a match: 34 Tipperary 3–26 : 6–8 Galway (All-Ireland semi-final) Most goals by one team in a match: 7 Galway 7–24 : 1–8 Antrim (All-Ireland quarter-final) Most goals scored by a losing team: 6 Galway 6–8 : 3–26 Tipperary (All-Ireland semi-final) Most points scored by a losing team: 18 Limerick 3–18 : 4–16 Tipperary (Munster final)
Miscellaneous
The All-Ireland final between Tipperary and Kilkenny was the first championship decider to be broadcast in colour by Telefís Éireann. Some years later, it was revealed that RTÉ had recorded over its only copy of archive footage of the game, due to a shortage of blank cassette tape. Kilkenny's Eddie Keher set a new scoring record in an All-Ireland final. He scored 2–11 of his team's total of 5–14 yet, remarkably, ended up on the losing team.
Top scorers
Season Rank Player County Tally Total Matches Average1Eddie KeherKilkenny4–4355413.752Michael 'Babs' KeatingTipperary6–2644411.003Richie BennisLimerick2–2531310.334Tommy RingWestmeath2–111744.25John FlanaganTipperary2–111728.506Mossy MurphyKilkenny4–041644.007Francis LoughnaneTipperary0–151543.758Des CoenGalway3–051427.009Pat DelaneyKilkenny3–041343.25Christy KeoghWexford1–101326.50
Single game Rank Player County Tally Total Opposition1Michael 'Babs' KeatingTipperary2–1218Galway2Eddie KeherKilkenny2–1117Tipperary3Eddie KeherKilkenny0–1414London4Michael 'Babs' KeatingTipperary3-0413LimerickDes CoenGalway3-0413AntrimEddie KeherKilkenny2-0713Dublin5Johnny WalshKildare1-0912WestmeathRichie BennisLimerick0–1212Tipperary6Richie BennisLimerick1-0811CorkEddie KeherKilkenny0–1111Wexford
Player facts
Debutantes
The following players made their début in the 1971 championship:
Player Team Date Opposition GameSeánie O'LearyCorkJuly 4LimerickMunster semi-final
Retirees The following players played their last game in the 1971 championship:
Player Team Date Opposition Game DébutOllie WalshKilkennySeptember 5TipperaryAll-Ireland final1956
References
External links All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1971 Results