By Mark Jones
DUBLIN — The recently crowned All-Ireland champions, Offaly and Galway, experienced contrasting fortunes when the draws for next year’s hurling and football championships were made last weekend.
Offaly are set to meet the winners of the Wexford-Dublin game in the Leinster hurling semifinal, while Galway find themselves in the easier side of the Connacht football draw.
Galway travel to London first and are then due to meet Sligo in the semifinal. New York’s introduction to the big time begins with a difficult game against Mayo.
Elsewhere in football, Kildare meet Offaly in a crunch tie in Leinster and Cork and Kerry will only clash in Munster if both teams make it to the final.
The hurlers of Clare will begin their quest for a third Munster title with a semifinal against either Tipperary or Kerry and current League champions, Cork, await the winners of the Limerick-Waterford game in the other semifinal.
Sign up to The Irish Echo Newsletter
Hurling championship
Leinster — Quarterfinal: (A) Wexford vs. Dublin. Semifinals: Winners A vs. Offaly; Laois vs. Kilkenny.
Munster — First round: Tipperary vs. Kerry; Waterford vs. Limerick. Semifinals: Clare vs. winners Tipperary-Kerry; Cork vs. winners Waterford-Limerick.
Ulster — Semifinals: Antrim vs. London; Derry vs. Down.
Connacht — Final: Galway vs. Roscommon.
Football championship
Connacht — Preliminary round: (A) London vs. Galway; (B) Mayo vs. New York; (C) Roscommon vs. Leitrim. Semifinals: Winners A vs. Sligo; Winners B vs. Winners C.
Munster — (A) Tipperary vs. Kerry; (B) Waterford vs. Cork. Semifinals: Winners A vs. Clare; Winners B vs. Limerick.
Leinster — Preliminary round: (1) Carlow vs. Westmeath; (2) Wexford vs. Longford. Final: Winners 1 vs. 2. First round: (A) Kildare vs. Offaly; (B) Wicklow vs. Meath; (C) Laois vs. preliminary round winner; (D) Dublin vs. Louth. Semifinals: A vs. B; C vs. D.
Ulster — Preliminary round: Monaghan vs. Fermanagh. First round: (A) Donegal vs. Armagh; (B) Derry vs. Cavan; (C) Down vs. Antrim; (D) Tyrone vs. preliminary round winners. Semifinals: A vs. B; C vs. D.