The Croker blues

With inter-county GAA commitments for the year now complete, the focus switches back to the home scene and from this weekend, club action will dominate.
The members of the minor hurling panel will have little time to dwell on last Sunday’s defeat as they will be back in action with their clubs ahead of important ties in the race for the various domestic titles.
For most, the next few weeks will be particularly busy, as the minor hurling and football championships resume. These competitions are well behind schedule as a number of rounds were deferred due to the involvement of the minors in the All-Ireland final.
From here on, the race for the minor hurling and football championships switches to weekends so it’s likely that, for the next few weeks at least, many of the minors will have to play two games at weekends.
Attempts to play some games midweek under lights are, it is understood, meeting opposition from clubs, who argue they have players away at college and it would be extremely difficult to get them home for games. Up to the suspension of action in the minor competitions, the matches were played midweek
Furthermore, those who are still in second-level education are due back in training with their school sides this week ahead of the opening games in the various Munster colleges competitions, some of which are set for the last week of this month.
Three quarter-final ties, two of which are replays, dominate the football scene this weekend. Two replays in the relegation play-offs also take place.
The remaining games in the Senior, Intermediate and Junior A Hurling Championship league series will also be decided this weekend, along with the quarter-final games in the Junior B Championship.
The senior football semi-finals are set for Saturday week, along with the intermediate semi-finals, while the senior (A and B) and intermediate hurling quarter-finals will also be played on Saturday and Sunday week.
The draws for the concluding stages of the senior A and B hurling championships and the senior hurling relegation play-offs will be made at the weekend after round five games are completed.
With deadlines to be met in order for the various winners to go on and play in the provincial championships, it will be full steam ahead in all competitions.
The county hurling final has already been put back a week, to October 17, with the football final remaining on October 3, as scheduled in the master fixtures list.