The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1897 was the eleventh series of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for the top hurling teams in Ireland....

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

's premier hurling

Hurling

Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...

 knock-out competition

Single-elimination tournament

A single-elimination tournament, also called a knockout, cup or sudden death tournament, is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match or bracket is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event...

. Limerick

Limerick GAA

The Limerick County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Limerick GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Limerick...

 won the championship, beating Kilkenny

Kilkenny GAA

The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic Games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny inter-county teams...

 3-4 to 2-4 in the final.

Format

All-Ireland Championship

Semi-final: (1 match) This is a lone game which sees the winners of the Leinster championship play Galway

Galway GAA

The Galway County Boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Galway GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Galway. The county boards are also responsible for the Galway inter-county teams.Unlike all other counties in Ireland,...

 who receive a bye to this stage. One team is eliminated while the winning team advances to the final.

Final: (1 match) The winners of the lone semi-final play the winners of the Munster championship.

Leinster Senior Hurling Championship

Leinster Senior Hurling Championship

The Leinster GAA Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1888 for the top hurling teams in the province of Leinster in Ireland....

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Munster Senior Hurling Championship

Munster Senior Hurling Championship

The Munster GAA Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1888 for the top hurling teams in the province of Munster in Ireland....

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All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship

The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1887 for the top hurling teams in Ireland....

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Miscellaneous

• Limerick
  Limerick GAA
  The Limerick County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Limerick GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Limerick...
  
   win the Munster championship
  Munster Senior Hurling Championship
  The Munster GAA Hurling Championship is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1888 for the top hurling teams in the province of Munster in Ireland....
  
   for the first time. It was their fourth appearance in the final.
• An All-Ireland semi-final is played for the first time since the 1887 championship
  All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1887
  -Miscellaneous:* Tipperary receive a walkover in their opening game against Dublin. The Dublin champions, Metropolitans, sought a postponement of the game from the GAA's Executive because some of their players were on holidays...
  
  . That game is the first ever championship meeting of Galway
  Galway GAA
  The Galway County Boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Galway GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Galway. The county boards are also responsible for the Galway inter-county teams.Unlike all other counties in Ireland,...
  
   and Kilkenny
  Kilkenny GAA
  The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic Games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny inter-county teams...
  
  .
• The All-Ireland final is the very first championship meeting of Kilkenny and Limerick. The win gives Limerick their very first championship.
• Limerick become fifth team to win the All-Ireland hurling title. They become the fourth team to have won an All-Ireland title in both hurling and Gaelic football
  Gaelic football
  Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
  
  .

Sources

• Corry, Eoghan, The GAA Book of Lists (Hodder Headline Ireland, 2005).
• Donegan, Des, The Complete Handbook of Gaelic Games (DBA Publications Limited, 2005).