2005 Christy Ring Cup

The 2005 Christy Ring Cup was the inaugural staging of the Christy Ring Cup, the Gaelic Athletic Association's second-tier hurling championship. Competing teams, from Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster were divided into two groups of five, in which teams played each other only once, meaning two home games and two away games per team. The top two teams of each group qualified for the knock-out stages.

2005 Christy Ring Cup

Dates	4 June 2005 - 14 August 2005
Teams	10
Champions	Westmeath (1stth title) John Shaw (captain) Séamus Qualter (manager)
Runners-up	Down Simon Wilson (captain) John Crossey (manager)
Relegated	Derry
Tournament statistics
Matches played	26
Goals scored	104 (4 per match)
Points scored	759 (29.19 per match)
Top scorer(s)	Mattie Dowd (2-39)
(Next) 2006 →

On 14 August 2005, Westmeath won the Christy Ring Cup following a 1-23 to 2-18 defeat of Down in the final.

Kildare's Mattie Dowd was the Christy Ring Cup top scorer with 2-39.

Team changes

To Championship

Relegated from the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship

• Carlow
• Kildare
• Meath
• Westmeath
• Wicklow

Relegated from the Munster Senior Hurling Championship

• Kerry

Relegated from the Ulster Senior Hurling Championship (Continued to compete in Ulster)

• Derry
• Down

Promoted from the All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championship

• Mayo
• Roscommon

Teams

General Information

County	Last Provincial title	Last All-Ireland title	Position in 2004 Championship	Appearance
Carlow	—	—	Leinster preliminary round	1st
Derry	2001	—	Ulster semi-final	1st
Down	1997	—	Qualifiers round 1	1st
Kerry	1891	1891	Munster quarter-final	1st
Kildare	—	—	Leinster first round	1st
Mayo	1909	—	All Ireland senior b Runners-up	1st
Meath	—	—	Leinster first round	1st
Roscommon	1913	—	—	1st
Westmeath	—	—	Leinster quarter-final	1st
Wicklow	—	—	Leinster preliminary round	1st

Personnel and kits

County	Manager	Captain(s)	Sponsor
Carlow
Derry
Down
Kerry
Kildare
Mayo
Meath
Roscommon
Westmeath
Wicklow

Group A

Table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	SF	SA	Diff	Pts	Qualification
1	Westmeath	4	3	0	1	10-64	8-49	+21	6	Advance to Knockout Stage
2	Down	4	3	0	1	14-72	9-57	+30	6
3	Meath	4	2	1	1	9-67	7-52	+21	5
4	Roscommon	4	1	0	3	4-46	13-83	-64	2	Advance to Relegation Playoffs
5	Derry	4	0	1	3	7-49	7-57	-8	1

Round 1

Derry v Down

11 June 2005 Round 1	Derry	3-14 - 3-17	Down	Lavey Sportsfield
		Report

Westmeath v Roscommon

11 June 2005 Round 1	Westmeath	4-19 - 0-11	Roscommon	Cusack Park
	A Mitchell 1-7, B Kennedy 1-3, D McNicholas 1-2 (1 sl), J Clarke 1-1, B Connaughton, P Dowdall, B Connaughton, E Loughlin, D McCormack, J Shaw 0-1 each.	Report	M R Mulrey 0-5, D Mulvey 0-3, Connaughton, G Waldron, D Lohan 0-1 each.

Round 2

Roscommon v Derry

18 June 2005 Round 2	Roscommon	1-15 - 1-13	Derry	Athleague Sportsfield
	R Mulry 0-8 (6f), T Reddington 1-0, J Moran, L Murray 0-2 each, M Connaughton, M Brehony, B Hanley 0-1 each.	Report	G Biggs 0-7 (4f), R Convery 1-2 (1f), R Kennedy 0-2, C Quinn, P Quinn 0-1 each.

Meath v Westmeath

18 June 2005 Round 2	Meath	3-16 - 2-10	Westmeath	Páirc Tailteann
	J Toole 1-4, P Coone 1-1, N Horan 0-4, N Reilly 1-0, S Clynch, M Cole, D Kirby 0-2 each, P Fagan 0-1.	Report	D McNicholas 1-3, A Mitchell 0-3, N Gavin 1-0, E Loughlin 0-2, B Connaughton, D McCormack 0-1 each.

Round 3

Derry v Meath

25 June 2005 Round 3

Derry

1-14 - 2-11

Meath

Dean McGlinchey Park

Down v Roscommon

25 June 2005 Round 3	Down	5-25 - 2-8	Roscommon	McKenna Park
	M Coulter 1-6, S Clarke 1-2, P Braniff 1-3, A Savage 1-1, B McGourty 0-4, G Adair 1-0, G Johnson 0-3, E Clarke 0-2, S Wilson 0-2, G Savage 0-1, C Coulter 0-1.	Report	D Lohan 1-1, J Moran 1-0, D Mulvey 0-3, M Connaughton 0-1, L Murray 0-1, B Hanley 0-1.

Round 4

Meath v Down

2 July 2005 Round 4	Meath	1-14 - 3-16	Down	Páirc Tailteann
	N Horan 0-6, J Toole 0-3, J Waters 1-0, S Clynch 0-3, K Dowd, D Kirby 0-1 each.	Report	G Johnston 1-4, P Braniff 1-3, M Coulter 0-5, S Clarke 1-0, E Clarke 0-2, A Savage, B McGourty, 0-1 each.

Westmeath v Derry

2 July 2005 Round 4	Westmeath	1-14 - 2-8	Derry	Cusack Park
	A Mitchell 0-6 (3f, 1 '65'), E Loughlin 0-3, D McNicholas 1-0, B Kennedy 0-2, D McCormack, J Shaw and N Gavin 0-1 each.	Report	F McGuigan 1-2, R Convery 0-4 (2f), J O'Dwyer 1-0, Gregory Biggs 0-1, Gary Biggs 0-1f.	Referee: T Ryan (Tipperary)

Round 5

Down v Westmeath

16 July 2005 Round 5	Down	3-14 - 3-21	Westmeath	Páirc Esler
			A Mitchell 1-4, B Kennedy 1-3, K Cosgrove 1-2, J Shaw 0-4, J Clarke 0-2, D Curley 0-1, E Loughlin 0-1, B Connaughton 0-1, B Murtagh 0-1, R Whelan 0-1.

Roscommon v Meath

16 July 2005 Round 5

Roscommon

1-12 - 3-26

Meath

Athleague Sportsfield

Group B

Table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	SF	SA	Diff	Pts	Qualification
1	Carlow	4	3	0	1	5-50	5-53	-3	6	Advance to Knockout Stage
2	Kildare	4	3	0	1	11-54	7-50	+16	6
3	Kerry	4	2	1	1	12-59	8-46	+25	5
4	Wicklow	4	1	1	2	8-55	10-49	+0	3	Advance to Relegation Playoffs
5	Mayo	4	0	0	4	7-41	13-61	-38	0

Round 1

Kildare v Kerry

4 June 2005 Round 1	Kildare	4-12 - 1-17	Kerry	Sallins Road
	M Dowd (0-6, 3f, 1 ‘65’), A Quinn (2-0), J Dempsey (1-0), B Byrne (1-0), T Carew (0-3, 1f), A McAndrew (0-2), Colm Buggy (0-1).	Report	M Conway (0-12, 11f), E Sheehy (1-0), E Tuohy (0-1), S Sheehan (0-1), JM Dooley (0-1), I McCarthy (0-1), S Brick (0-1).

Carlow v Wicklow

4 June 2005 Round 1	Carlow	2-13 - 1-13	Wicklow	Dr. Cullen Park
	Pat Coady 0-9, M Brennan 2-1, D Murphy 0-2, R Dunbar 0-1.		J O’Neill 1-4, J Keogh 0-3, D Hyland 0-2, A Tiernan 0-1, C Kavanagh 0-1.	Referee: A Stapleton (Laois)

Round 2

Wicklow v Kildare

11 June 2005 Round 2	Wicklow	2-12 - 2-13	Kildare	Pearse Park
	J O'Neill 2-4, D Hyland 0-5, A Tiernan, J Murphy, W O'Gorman 0-1 each	Report	M Dowd 0-9 (4f), A McAndrew, B White 1-0 each, T Carnew 0-2 (2f), C Buggy, J Dempsey.

Carlow v Mayo

12 June 2005 Round 2	Carlow	1-12 - 0-13	Mayo	Pearse Stadium
	Des Murphy (1-2), P Coady (0-4, two frees), C English (0-2, frees), D Shaw (0-1), D Roberts (0-1, from a 65), P Kehoe (0-1), B Lawler (0-1).	Report	A Freeman (0-6, three frees), K Higgins (0-3, one free), K Healy (0-1), S Broderick (0-1), D McConn (0-1), K Robinson (0-1).

Round 3

Kildare v Mayo

25 June 2005 Round 3	Kildare	4-17 - 4-4	Mayo	Sallins Road
	M Dowd 1-9 (4 65s, 3f); R Coyle 2-0; J Dempsey 1-0; A McAndrew 0-2; J Brennan, A Quinn, B White, C Buggy, D Harney, T Murphy 0-1 each.	Report	K Higgins 1-2 (1-0 pen 2 frees); K Healy, S Broderick, A Howard 1-0 each; S Lenihan 0-2 (1f).

Kerry v Wicklow

9 July 2005 Round 3	Kerry	3-11 - 2-14	Wicklow	Austin Stack Park
	M Conway 0-6 (0-5 frees), J M Dooley 1-3, E Fitzgeerald 1-0, E Touhy 1-0, P Randles 0-2.	Report	W Gorman 2-1, D Hyland 0-4 (0-1 free), J O’Neill 0-4 (0-2 frees), J Murphy 0-2, J Bermingham 0-2, B Rickerby 0-1.

Round 4

Kerry v Mayo

2 July 2005 Round 4	Kerry	5-16 - 0-12	Mayo	Pearse Stadium
	M Conway (2-8, 5f), JM Dooley (3-3), S Brick (0-2), S Sheehan (0-2), P Randles (0-1).	Report	A Freeman (0-6f), G White (0-1), D McConn (0-1f), B Delaney (0-1), K Healy (0-1), S Broderick (0-1), R Campion (0-1).

Carlow v Kildare

6 July 2005 Round 4	Carlow	0-17 - 1-12	Kildare	Dr. Cullen Park
	P Coady (0-13, 11 frees, 2, 65's), M Brennan (0-1), R Dunbar (0-1), S McMahon (0-1), D Murphy (0-1),	Report	M Dowd (1-8, 1-5 frees), A (0-2), R Coyle (0-1), C Buggy (0-1).

Round 5

Kerry v Carlow

6 July 2005 Round 5	Kerry	3-15 - 2-8	Carlow	Austin Stack Park
	M Conway 0-8 (0-5 frees), J M Dooley 1-2, D Young and E Tuohy 1-0 each, J Egan and P Lyons 0-2 each, T Flynn 0-1 free.	Report	P Coady 0-6 (0-5 frees), B Lawler 1-1, M Brennan 1-0 R Dunbar 0-1.

Wicklow v Mayo

16 July 2005 Round 5	Wicklow	3-16 - 3-12	Mayo	Pearse Park
	J O'Neill (1-7), D Hyland (1-5), D Moran (1-0), B Rickerby (0-1), T Collins (0-1).	Report	S Duffy (1-1), P Reape (1-1), S Broderick (0-4), A Freeman (0-4), D McConn (1-0), D Kirby (0-2).

Relegation Playoffs

Wicklow v Derry

30 July 2005 Semi-final	Wicklow	2-27 - 3-22	Derry	Páirc Tailteann
	D Hyland 1-4, J O’Neill 0-6, J Murphy 0-4, W O’Gorman 1-1, L Kennedy 0-2, A Tiernan 0-2, T Collins 0-2, B Rickerby 0-2, G Birmingham 0-1, P Lee 0-1, TJ Byrne 0-1.		Gregory Biggs 0-12, J O’Dwyer 2-0, F McGuigan 1-0, Gary Biggs, R Kennedy, C Quinn, P Quigg 0-2 each, P O’Kane, P Sweeney, K Kelly 0-1 each.

Roscommon v Mayo

31 July 2005 Semi-final	Roscommon	1-13 - 0-15	Mayo	Athleague Sportsfield
	D Mulvey 0-6, G Waldron 1-0, M Connaughton 0-2, C Kelly 0-2, R Mulvey 0-1, J Moran 0-1, D Lohan 0-1.		A Freeman 0-9, S Broderick 0-4, S Coyne, A Hession 0-1.

Mayo v Derry

13 August 2005 Final	Mayo	4-14 - 1-10	Derry	Markievicz Park
	K Higgins 2-3, K Healy 2-2, S Leneghan 0-2, A Freeman 0-4 (all frees), S Broderick 0-2, G White 0-1.	Report	J O'Dwyer 1-3, G Biggs 0-3 (2 f '65'), P Convery 0-2, S McBride, C Quinn 0-1 each.	Referee: A Heagney (Clare)

Knockout stage

Bracket

	Semi-Finals					Final
	1A	Westmeath	7-14
	2B	Kildare	1-12
						1A	Westmeath	1-23
						1B	Down	2-18
	1B	Carlow	1-11
	2A	Down	4-23

Semi-finals

Westmeath v Kildare

30 July 2005 Semi-final	Westmeath	7-14 - 1-12	Kildare	Páirc Tailteann
	J Shaw 3-2, A Mitchell 0-5, K Cosgrove, R Wheelan, J Clarke 1-1 each, D Carty 1-0, E Loughlin, B Kennedy, D McNicholas, D Devine 0-1 each.	Report	M Dowd 0-7, A McAndrew 0-3, J Dempsey 1-0, T Carew, D Harney 0-1 each.	Referee: D Connolly (Kilkenny)

Down v Carlow

31 July 2005 Semi-final	Down	4-23 - 1-11	Carlow	Parnell Park
	M Coulter 1-7 (1-6f), P Braniff 2-4, G Johnson 1-3, S Wilson 0-3 (2f), B McGourty 0-2, G Savage, A Savage, S Clarke (f), E Clarke 0-1 each.	Report	P Coady 0-5 (4f), D Murphy 1-1, R Dunbar, D Roberts, K English, M Brennan, R Foley 0-1	Referee: T Ryan (Tipperary)

Christy Ring Cup Final

Westmeath v Down

14 August 2005 Final	Westmeath	1-23 - 2-18	Down	Croke Park
	A Mitchell 0-9 (8f, 0-1 '65'), J Shaw 1-3, E Loughlin 0-4, B Kennedy, K Cosgrove, B Murtagh 0-2 each, R Whelan 0-1.	Report	M Coulter 0-8 (8f), G Johnson 1-3, S Clarke 1-1, B McGourty 0-2, E Clarke, G Adair, A Savage, F Wilson 0-1 each.	Referee: D Richardson (Limerick)

Stadia and locations

See also: List of Gaelic Athletic Association stadiums

Championship Statistics

Top Scorers Overall

Rank	Player	County	Tally	Total	Matches	Average
1	Mattie Dowd	Kildare	2-39	45	5	9.00
2	Martin Coulter	Down	2-35	41	6	6.83
3	Pat Coady	Carlow	0-37	37	5	7.40

Scoring events

• Widest winning margin: 26 points
  • Down 5-25 - 2-08 Roscommon (Round 3)
• Most goals in a match: 8
  • Kildare 4-17 - 4-04 Mayo (Round 3)
  • Westmeath 7-14 - 1-12 Kildare (Semi-finals)
• Most points in a match: 49
  • Wicklow 2-27 - 3-22 Derry (Relegation playoff semi-final)
• Most goals by one team in a match: 7
  • Westmeath 7-14 - 1-12 Kildare (Semi-finals)
• Most points by one team in a match: 27
  • Wicklow 2-27 - 3-22 Derry (Relegation playoff semi-final)
• Highest aggregate score: 64 points
  • Wicklow 2-27 - 3-22 Derry (Relegation playoff semi-final)
• Lowest aggregate score: 28 points
  • Carlow 1-12 - 0-13 Mayo (Round 2)

Miscellaneous

• Westmeath won their 1st championship in 14 years, winning the 1991 All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championship.
• Westmeath became the first county to win the Christy Ring Cup.

See also

• 2005 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship
• 2005 Munster Senior Hurling Championship
• 2005 Leinster Senior Hurling Championship
• 2005 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship
• 2005 Nicky Rackard Cup (Tier 3)