2019 Gourmet Food Parlour O’Connor Cup weekend to get underway on International Women’s Day

LEADING players from the colleges competing in the 2019 Gourmet Food Parlour HEC third-level Championships gathered on Thursday at Croke Park for Captains Day – as the race to succeed Dublin City University as O’Connor Cup champions intensifies.

 

The scene is set for the 2019 Gourmet Food Parlour O’Connor Cup weekend, which will be hosted by TU Dublin (Broombridge and Grangegorman), on Friday March 8 and Saturday March 9.

 

Over two eagerly-anticipated days, silverware will be handed out to the O’Connor, Giles, Lynch, Moynihan, Donaghy and Lagan Cup winners, while the O’Connor Shield Final is also down for decision.

 

Finals weekend kicks off on Friday March 8, which has added significance as it is International Women’s Day.

 

In the glamour O’Connor Cup semi-finals, Division 1 League Champions University College Dublin (UCD) will face University College Cork (UCC), with University of Limerick (UL) up against Queens University, Belfast.

 

All four Colleges are previous O’Connor Cup winners, with 2018 runners-up and 11-time winners UL last crowned champions in 2017.

 

UCD, the six-time champions, were winners in 2016, Queens won the title for the one and only time in their history in 2013, and UCC were champions in 2012, the last of their three titles.

 

This year marks the 32^nd anniversary of the Higher Education Committee third-level championships, with Gourmet Food Parlour on board for a second year as title sponsors of the various competitions.

 

It has also been confirmed that the prestigious O’Connor Cup Final will be streamed LIVE by TG4 on Saturday, March 9.

 

Speaking on behalf of sponsors Gourmet Food Parlour, Managing Director Lorraine Heskin said: “It is fantastic to see the HEC Championships going from strength to strength, with record numbers playing in 2019.

 

“We are so passionate about women in sport and delighted to be the sponsor of the HEC Championships for the second year in a row.

 

“We are really looking forward to Finals weekend and hope to see great matches at all levels.”

 

Darragh Biddlecombe, GAA Officer at TU Dublin – City Campus, said: “A large team of students, the GAA Office, Sports Officers and Estate staff are busy preparing for this event.

 

“The 2019 Gourmet Food Parlour HEC Championships will see 19 high-octane games taking place across Broombridge, Grangegorman and Abbotstown, which promises to be an electrifying festival of football.

 

“It is the first time the new University will host a major Gaelic Games Championships and will give an exciting opportunity to showcase our new pitch at Broombridge, and our new pitches and campus at TU Dublin Grangegorman, in Dublin’s City Centre. 

 

“We wish all of the teams competing the best of luck and an enjoyable tournament.”

 

Updates from the GFP O’Connor Cup weekend will be available on the LGFA’s various social media channels, using the hashtag #GFPColleges, and also check out the Ladies HEC social media channels.