Following on from last seasons clean sweep by Kilkenny everyone seems to be realising that a good league campaign is very important for a successful championship season. The rule isn’t 100% hard and fast but by and large over the last few seasons it’s held true. Lets have a look at how the All-Ireland finalists of recent times fared during the league. One thing is pretty clear, each year for the past 6, the All-Ireland champions have either won the league or at least had a great group stage.
2006 Kilkenny beat Cork in the All-Ireland.
- Kilkenny won the league going undefeated
- Cork had a mediocre campaign, winning 2, drawing 1 out of 5
2005 Cork beat Galway in the All-Ireland
- Cork topped group undefeated, winning 5 of 5, but didn’t reach the final
- Galway won 4 out of 5 group games but didn’t reach final
2004 Cork beat Kilkenny in the All-Ireland
- Cork topped group undefeated, winning 5 and drawing 1, but didn’t reach the final
- Kilkenny won 3 and lost 2, didn’t make the knock out
2003 Kilkenny beat Cork in the All-Ireland
- Kilkenny won the league
- Cork topped group winning 4 and drawing 1
2002 Kilkenny beat Clare in the All-Ireland
- Kilkenny won the league
- Clare won 3 and lost 2 in their group
2001 Tipperary beat Galway in the All-Ireland
- Tipp won the league
- Galway were beaten in the semis by Tipp
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