GAA Betting: Cork Head The Market For League Glory
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There was only one game in Division 1A last weekend, but following a big result in that particular contest, betting sites have moved Cork to the top of the market for this year’s National Hurling League.
Originally scheduled to take place several weeks earlier before inclement weather conditions caused a postponement, Kilkenny and Limerick finally clashed at Nowlan Park on Saturday.
Both teams had endured contrasting fortunes in their previous league outings – Kilkenny lost out to Tipperary by nine points, while Limerick enjoyed a 12-point victory at home to Galway.
Kilkenny Defeat Limerick
TJ Reid and Mossy Keoghan led the charge for Kilkenny against Limerick, and the hosts brought a commanding 0-18 to 0-7 lead into the interval at the Marble County venue.
As expected, Limerick rallied on the resumption, and with David Reidy in fine form from frees, they reduced the deficit to just four points deep into the second half.
However, Kilkenny regained control and eventually ended with a 0-29 to 0-20 victory.
In their final game of this year’s league campaign, Derek Lyng’s men retained their top-tier status while resigning 2024 champions Clare to relegation for the 2026 season.
The result also ensured that Wexford will be playing in Division 1B next year.
Having been regarded as favourites with betting apps for NHL glory for several weeks, Limerick are also out of reckoning along with Kilkenny for a league final spot and can’t finish any higher than third in the final standings.
Despite having to face basement side Clare at Semple Stadium in Thurles this Saturday, Tipperary are already guaranteed a league final place for the first time since 2018.
Cork Head The Market
Cork and Galway will meet at Pairc Ui Chaoimh on the same day, and this is essentially a play-off to see who makes it through to face Tipp in the Division 1A decider.
Whoever wins this game is assured of a final spot, but a draw for Cork (who have already shared the spoils with Limerick in this year’s competition) would also be enough to seal their place in the next phase.
Interestingly, despite still having some work to do before making it through, Cork are seen as the favourites for the 2025 NHL title with Boylesports rating them at 4/6.
Considering they only lost last year’s All-Ireland senior hurling championship final by a single point after extra time to Clare, it is understandable that they are seen as the most likely winners of the three teams still in contention.
Whereas the Leesiders contested the Liam MacCarthy Cup right down to the final stage of the competition, both Tipperary and Galway failed to progress beyond their provincial championships.
You have to go back to 1998 for the last time the Rebels secured the top National Hurling League crown – a 2-14 to 0-13 win at Semple Stadium.
Yet with Darragh Fitzgibbon, Declan Dalton and Brian Hayes all included amongst the top 10 scorers in this year’s Division 1A, they certainly have the firepower to challenge seriously for a league crown.
Tipperary Are Strong Contenders
Tipperary’s record of four wins and one defeat from five games has them at the summit of the Division 1A table.
They can also afford the luxury of resting players for their final-round encounter with Clare this Saturday. should manager Liam Cahill choose to do so. This would ensure they are fresh for a league final at the beginning of April.
Prodigious youngster Darragh McCarthy has shone brightly for Tipperary this year, and his current haul of 2-44 makes him not only the top scorer in the 2025 NHL top tier but also the player with the best scoring average in the division.
It has been a long, barren spell for the Premier County in this competition, with their last league triumph being as far back as 2008.
From the perspective of GAA betting sites, Cahill’s side are viewed as a 6/4 prospect to secure what would be a record-breaking 20th National Hurling League title.
Galway Have An Outside Chance
Technically speaking, you only have to go back to 2021 for the last time that Galway claimed an NHL crown.
However, that was a shared success with Kilkenny after both teams finished top of their respective groups on the same number of points in a league during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nevertheless, they secured a league title in 2017 with a magnificent 3-21 to 0-14 final victory over Tipperary at the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. This was just a few months before adding Leinster and All-Ireland senior championships to their list of accomplishments for the year.
Micheal Donoghue was the manager for that clean sweep of silverware, and he is now back in charge of the Tribesmen for a second term.
There have been difficult defeats to Tipperary and Limerick thus far in the league. Still, Galway have also accumulated three wins on the bounce at the expense of Kilkenny, Clare and Wexford.
Throughout their five games in the league, Donoghue has used a massive amount of players as he looks to settle on his squad for the forthcoming championship.
That will undoubtedly be the county’s priority for 2025, but the Clarinbridge man will also want his charges to deliver a strong display against the Leesiders this Saturday.
They may not be valued as highly as Cork and Tipperary, but at odds of 15/2, the Tribesmen could make for an interesting outside bet.