Stricter rules to limit college players' involvement in pre-season competitions

The 2026 GAA season officially begins this weekend, with provincial pre-season competitions returning to the calendar after a hiatus in 2025.

Tomorrow night, the McGrath Cup opens as Waterford take on Clare while Limerick clash with Tipperary – Cork, who are the holders since 2024, make their bow away to Tipp on Tuesday night, in a game which has been moved to Cappawhite with a 7pm throw-in.

Equally, while the Co-op SuperStores Munster Hurling League starts on Saturday – Tipperary meet Waterford in Clonmel with Clare up against Limerick in Tulla, both games 2pm – Ben O’Connor’s Cork side must wait until Wednesday night to get going, headed for TUS Gaelic Grounds in Limerick with a 7.35pm start.

The fact that both Cork sides are in midweek action means they will be subject to a new ruling which has come into place for this season regarding the involvement of players who are engaged in third-level activity with their college sides.

Those included in the championship delcarations for the Fitzgibbon and Sigerson Cups – 35-player lists submitted by December 1 – cannot play for their counties in midweek games, which are defined as matches taking place on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The night after the Limerick-Cork clash, Thursday, January 8, UCC and MTU Cork meet each other in their Electric Ireland Fitzgibbon Cup opener at the Mardyke (7pm).

In the Sigerson Cup, both Cork colleges play on Wednesday, January 7 – MTU at home to the University of Limerick while UCC go head-to-head with ATU Sligo in Edenderry.

In addition to the prohibition on midweek inter-county involvement for such players, there must also be a window of at least 48 hours (from starting time of matches) after a third-level championship match before they can be considered eligible to play a pre-season game with their counties.

If these regulations are breached by a county, the opposition shall be awarded the match; were it to happen that both teams had transgressed, the pair would be expelled from the competition.

After the Limerick match, Cork host Clare in Mallow on January 12 at 7pm – as that is a Monday night, it does not count as a midweek match. The footballers’ second group game is at home to Limerick a day previously, with Páirc Uí Rinn the venue for a 2pm start.

MTU Cork’s second Fitzgibbon game is at home to Garda College on Thursday, January 15 while UCC go to Templemore to face the trainee law-enforcement officers a week later, January 22.