{{Short description|Irish hurling competition}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Multiple issues| {{more citations|date=October 2023}} {{update|date=September 2010}} }}
{{Infobox hurling championship|name=2006 Nicky Rackard Cup|image=|imagesize=|caption=|dates=10 June — 12 August|teams=12|champions=Derry|count=1|champions captain=|champions manager=|runners-up=Donegal|runners-up captain=|runners-up manager=|matches=23|goals=|points=|relegated=|top scorer=|previous year=2005|previous tournament=2005 Nicky Rackard Cup|next year=2007|next tournament=2007 Nicky Rackard Cup |promoted=Derry}}
The '''2006 Nicky Rackard Cup''' was the 2006 campaign of the [[Nicky Rackard Cup]] and began on Saturday June 10, 2006. 2006 was the second time this new element of the [[All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship]] was introduced. It was devised by the [[Hurling]] Development Committee to encourage some of the weaker hurling [[Counties of Ireland|counties]] and to give them the chance of playing more games. The final will be played on Sunday, August 13 in [[Croke Park]], [[Dublin]] City.
Donegal, Armagh, Longford and Derry played in the semi-finals. Longford qualified by defeating the other two group runners-up. After winning their semi-finals, Donegal and Derry contested the final in [[Croke Park]] on August 12. [[Derry GAA|Derry]] won easily and were promoted to the [[2007 Christy Ring Cup]].
==Format==
Twelve teams participate in the 2006 Nicky Rackard Cup. The teams were divided into three groups of four roughly based on geographical criteria. The groups are identical to the [[Nicky Rackard Cup 2005]] except that in 3C Derry replace London, who have been promoted.
*'''Group 3A''': [[Sligo GAA|Sligo]], [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]], [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] and [[Fermanagh GAA|Fermanagh]] *'''Group 3B''': [[Louth GAA|Louth]], [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]], [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] and [[Leitrim GAA|Leitrim]] *'''Group 3C''': [[Derry GAA|Derry]], Warwickshire, [[Longford GAA|Longford]] and [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]]
The group winners advance to the semi-finals. The runners-up in Groups 3A and 3B meet in the quarter-final playoffs, with the winners meeting the runner-up in Group 3C in the quarter-final.
== Team changes ==
=== To Championship === Relegated from the [[Christy Ring Cup]]
* [[Derry GAA|Derry]]
=== From Championship === Promoted to the [[Christy Ring Cup]]
* [[London GAA|London]]
== Teams ==
=== General Information === {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" ![[County (Gaelic games)|County]] !Last Provincial Title !Last All-Ireland Title !Position in [[2005 Nicky Rackard Cup|2005]] Championship !Appearance |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Armagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Armagh county hurling team|Armagh]] |— |— |Quarter-finals |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Cavan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Cavan county hurling team|Cavan]] |— |— |Group Stage |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours_of_Derry.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Derry county hurling team|Derry]] |[[2001 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|2001]]<ref>{{cite news |last=Wilson |first=Michael |date=1 June 2023 |title=Christy Ring Cup final is Derry hurling's biggest game for 20 years, says Johnny McGarvey |url=https://www.derryjournal.com/sport/gaa/christy-ring-cup-final-is-derry-hurlings-biggest-game-for-20-years-says-johnny-mcgarvey-4166629 |work=[[Derry Journal]]|access-date=October 28, 2023}}</ref> |— |Lost relegation playoff ([[Christy Ring Cup]]) |1st |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Donegal.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Donegal county hurling team|Donegal]] |[[1932 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1932]] |— |Semi-finals |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Fermanagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Fermanagh county hurling team|Fermanagh]] |— |— |Group Stage |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Leitrim.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Leitrim county hurling team|Leitrim]] |— |— |Group Stage |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Longford.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Longford county hurling team|Longford]] |— |— |Quarter-finals |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Louth.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Louth county hurling team|Louth]] |— |— |Runners-up |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Monaghan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Monaghan county hurling team|Monaghan]] |[[1915 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship|1915]] |— |Group Stage |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Sligo.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Sligo county hurling team|Sligo]] |— |— |Group Stage |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Tyrone.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Tyrone county hurling team|Tyrone]] |— |— |Semi-finals |2nd |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Warwickshire.svg|border|20x20px]][[Warwickshire county hurling team|Warwickshire]] |— |— |Group Stage |2nd |}
==Group stage==
=== Group 3A === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pos|Position}} ! width="150" style="text-align:left;" |Team ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pld|Games played}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|W|Wins}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|D|Draws}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|L|Losses}} ! width="40" |{{Tooltip|SF|Score for}} ! width="40" |{{Tooltip|SA|Score against}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Diff|Scoring difference}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pts|Points}} !Qualification |- style="background:#ccffcc" |1 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Donegal.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] |'''3''' |2 |1 |0 |8-43 |2-33 | +28 |'''5''' | Advance to Semi-final |- style="background:#BEDBED" |2 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Sligo.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Sligo GAA|Sligo]] |'''3''' |2 |1 |0 |7-43 |7-20 | +23 |'''5''' |Advance to Quarter-Final playoff |- |3 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Fermanagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Fermanagh GAA|Fermanagh]] |'''3''' |1 |0 |2 |7-31 |6-48 | -14 |'''2''' | rowspan="2" | |- |4 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Tyrone.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |'''3''' |0 |0 |3 |3-33 |10-49 | -37 |'''0''' |}
==== Matches ==== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Date ! Venue ! Winner ! Score ! Loser ! Score |- align="center" | June 10 | [[Irvinestown]] | '''Fermanagh''' | 4-15 | Tyrone | 1-16 |- align="center" | June 10 | [[Ballyshannon]] | ''Donegal'' | 3-7 | ''Sligo'' | 1-13 |- align="center" | June 24 | [[Omagh]] | Tyrone | 1-10 | '''Donegal''' | 4-19 |- align="center" | June 24 | [[Markievicz Park]] | '''Sligo''' | 4-15 | Fermanagh | 3-8 |- align="center" | July 8 | [[Enniskillen]] | '''Donegal''' | 1-17 | Fermanagh | 0-08 |- align="center" | July 8 | | '''Sligo''' | 2-15 | Tyrone | 1-06 |}
=== Group 3B === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pos|Position}} ! width="150" style="text-align:left;" |Team ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pld|Games played}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|W|Wins}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|D|Draws}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|L|Losses}} ! width="40" |{{Tooltip|SF|Score for}} ! width="40" |{{Tooltip|SA|Score against}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Diff|Scoring difference}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pts|Points}} !Qualification |- style="background:#ccffcc" |1 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Armagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] |'''3''' |3 |0 |0 |11-65 |2-18 | +74 |'''5''' | Advance to Semi-final |- style="background:#BEDBED" |2 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Louth.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Louth GAA|Louth]] |'''3''' |2 |0 |1 |12-44 |3-28 | +43 |'''5''' |Advance to Quarter-Final playoff |- |3 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Leitrim.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Leitrim GAA|Leitrim]] |'''3''' |1 |0 |2 |6-32 |10-37 | -17 |'''2''' | rowspan="2" | |- |4 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Cavan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] |'''3''' |0 |0 |3 |5-10 |19-58 | -90 |'''0''' |}
==== Matches ==== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Date ! Venue ! Winner ! Score ! Loser ! Score |- align="center" | June 10 | [[Ballinamore]] | Leitrim | 0-10 | '''Louth''' | 3-12 |- align="center" | June 10 | | '''Armagh''' | 6-20 | Cavan | 0-2 |- align="center" | June 24 | [[Knockbridge]] | '''Louth''' | 8-25 | Cavan | 2-3 |- align="center" | June 24 | [[Keady]] | '''Armagh''' | 4-20 | Leitrim | 1-9 |- align="center" | July 8 | [[Ballyconnell]] | Cavan | 3-05 | '''Leitrim''' | 5-13 |- align="center" | July 8 | [[Drogheda]] | Louth | 1-07 | '''Armagh''' | 1-15 |}
=== Group 3C === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pos|Position}} ! width="150" style="text-align:left;" |Team ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pld|Games played}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|W|Wins}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|D|Draws}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|L|Losses}} ! width="40" |{{Tooltip|SF|Score for}} ! width="40" |{{Tooltip|SA|Score against}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Diff|Scoring difference}} ! width="20" |{{Tooltip|Pts|Points}} !Qualification |- style="background:#ccffcc" |1 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Derry.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Derry GAA|Derry]] |'''3''' |3 |0 |0 |8-54 |3-35 | +34 |'''6''' | Advance to Semi-final |- style="background:#FFFFE0" |2 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Longford.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]] |'''3''' |2 |0 |1 |3-44 |3-31 | +13 |'''4''' |Advance to Quarter-Final |- |3 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Warwickshire.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Warwickshire GAA|Warwickshire]] |'''3''' |1 |0 |2 |4-29 |4-44 | -15 |'''2''' | rowspan="2" | |- |4 | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours of Monaghan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] |'''3''' |0 |0 |3 |1-31 |6-48 | -32 |'''0''' |}
==== Matches ==== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Date ! Venue ! Winner ! Score ! Loser ! Score |- align="center" | June 10 | [[Ballinascreen]] | '''Derry''' | 2-14 | Longford | 0-12 |- align="center" | June 10 | | '''Warwickshire''' | 1-11 | Monaghan | 0-9 |- align="center" | June 24 | [[Clontibret]] | '''Derry''' | 4-24 | Monaghan | 0-11 |- align="center" | June 24 | [[Pearse Park (Longford)|Pearse Park]] | '''Longford''' | 2-18 | Warwickshire | 0-6 |- align="center" | July 8 | [[Páirc na hÉireann]] | '''Derry''' | 2-17 | Warwickshire | 3-12 |- align="center" | July 8 | [[Clones, County Monaghan|Clones]] | '''Longford''' | 1-14 | Monaghan | 1-11 |}
==Knockout stage==
=== Bracket === {{16TeamBracket-Compact-NoSeeds-Byes|RD1=Quarter-final playoffs|RD1-team08=|RD3=Semi-finals|RD4=Final|score-width=45|RD1-team07=|RD2-score03=|RD2=Quarter-finals|RD1-score08=|RD1-team15=[[File:Colours of Louth.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Louth GAA|Louth]]|RD1-score15=1-18|RD1-team16=[[File:Colours of Sligo.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Sligo GAA|Sligo]]|RD1-score16=1-13|RD2-team03=|RD1-score07=|RD2-team04=|RD3-score02=0-10|RD3-team03=[[File:Colours of Donegal.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]]|RD2-score07=1-19|RD2-team08=[[File:Colours of Louth.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Louth GAA|Louth]]|RD2-score08=2-07|RD3-team01=[[File:Colours of Derry.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Derry GAA|Derry]]|RD3-score01=3-10|RD3-team02=[[File:Colours of Armagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]]|RD2-score04=|RD2-team07=[[File:Colours of Longford.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]]|RD3-score03=1-19|RD3-team04=[[File:Colours of Longford.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]]|RD3-score04=0-10|RD4-team01=[[File:Colours of Derry.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Derry GAA|Derry]]|RD4-score01=5-15|RD4-team02=[[File:Colours of Donegal.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]]|RD4-score02=1-11}}
=== Quarter-finals === {{football box collapsible|date=15 July 2006|time=|round=Quarter-final playoff|score=1–18 — 1–13|report=|team1=[[File:Colours of Louth.svg|20px|border]] [[Louth GAA|Louth]]|goals1=|team2=[[File:Colours of Sligo.svg|20px|border]] [[Sligo GAA|Sligo]]|goals2=|stadium=|attendance=|referee=}}{{football box collapsible|date=22 July 2006|time=|round=Quarter-final|score=1–19 — 2–07|report=|team1=[[File:Colours of Longford.svg|20px|border]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]]|goals1=|team2=[[File:Colours of Louth.svg|20px|border]] [[Louth GAA|Louth]]|goals2=|stadium=[[Pearse Park (Longford)|Pearse Park]]|location=[[Longford]]|attendance=|referee=}}
=== Semi-finals === {{football box collapsible|date=29 July 2006|time=|round=Semi-final|score=3–10 — 0–10|report=|team1=[[File:Colours of Derry.svg|20px|border]] [[Derry GAA|Derry]]|goals1=|team2=[[File:Colours of Armagh.svg|20px|border]] [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]]|goals2=|stadium=[[Crossmaglen]]|location=[[Armagh]]|attendance=|referee=}}{{football box collapsible|date=30 July 2006|time=|round=Semi-final|score=1–19 — 0–10|report=|team1=[[File:Colours of Donegal.svg|20px|border]] [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]]|goals1=|team2=[[File:Colours of Longford.svg|20px|border]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]]|goals2=|stadium=[[Enniskillen]]|location=[[Fermanagh]]|attendance=|referee=}}
=== Final === {{Main|2006 Nicky Rackard Cup final}}<ref>{{cite web |date=5 June 2015 |title=Preview: Christy Ring Cup Final |url=https://www.gaa.ie/search/crawl/news/preview-christy-ring-cup-final-110834 |access-date=October 28, 2023 |website=www.GAA.IE |publisher=Gaelic Athletic Association}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=<!--No author listed--> |date=13 August 2006 |title=Magical McBride fires Oak Leaf boys to Rackard glory |url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/magical-mcbride-fires-oak-leaf-boys-to-rackard-glory/26369573.html |access-date=October 28, 2023 |work=[[Irish Independent]] |location=Dublin, Ireland}}</ref>{{football box collapsible|date=12 August 2006|time=|round=Final|score=5–15 — 1–11|report=https://m.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/magical-mcbride-fires-oak-leaf-boys-to-rackard-glory/26369573.html|team1=[[File:Colours of Derry.svg|20px|border]] [[Derry GAA|Derry]]|goals1=|team2=[[File:Colours of Donegal.svg|20px|border]] [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]]|goals2=|stadium=[[Croke Park]]|location=[[Dublin]]|attendance=|referee=}}[[Derry county hurling team|Derry]] are promoted to the [[2007 Christy Ring Cup]].
==Stadia and locations== {{Main|List of Gaelic Athletic Association stadiums}} {| class="wikitable sortable" ![[County (Gaelic games)|County]] ![[Geography of the GAA|Location]] ![[Province (Gaelic games)|Province]] !Stadium(s) !Capacity |- |[[File:Colours_of_Armagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] |[[Armagh]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[Athletic Grounds (Armagh)|Athletic Grounds]] |18,500 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Cavan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] |[[Cavan]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[Breffni Park]] |32,000 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Derry.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Derry GAA|Derry]] |[[Derry]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[Celtic Park (Derry)|Celtic Park]] |22,000 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Donegal_GAA.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] |[[Ballybofey]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[MacCumhaill Park]] |18,000 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Fermanagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Fermanagh GAA|Fermanagh]] |[[Enniskillen]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[Brewster Park (Enniskillen)|Brewster Park]] |18,000 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Leitrim.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Leitrim GAA|Leitrim]] |[[Carrick-on-Shannon]] |[[Connacht GAA|Connacht]] |[[Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada]] |9,331 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Longford.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]] |[[Longford]] |[[Leinster GAA|Leinster]] |[[Pearse Park (Longford)|Pearse Park]] |10,000 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Louth.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Louth GAA|Louth]] |[[Drogheda]] |[[Leinster GAA|Leinster]] |[[Drogheda Park]] |3,500 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Monaghan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] |[[Clones, County Monaghan|Clones]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[St Tiernach's Park]] |36,000 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Sligo.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Sligo GAA|Sligo]] |[[Sligo]] |[[Connacht GAA|Connacht]] |[[Markievicz Park]] |18,558 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Tyrone.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |[[Omagh]] |[[Ulster GAA|Ulster]] |[[Healy Park]] |17,636 |- |[[File:Colours_of_Warwickshire.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Warwickshire GAA|Warwickshire]] |[[Solihull]] |[[British GAA|Britain]] |[[Páirc na hÉireann]] |4,500 |}
==Statistics==
=== Scoring events ===
* Widest winning margin: '''40 points''' ** [[Louth GAA|Louth]] 8-25 - 2-03 [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] (Round 2) * Most goals in a match: '''10''' ** [[Louth GAA|Louth]] 8-25 - 2-03 [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] (Round 2) * Most points in a match: '''35''' ** [[Derry GAA|Derry]] 4-24 - 0-11 [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] (Round 2) * Most goals by one team in a match: '''8''' ** [[Louth GAA|Louth]] 8-25 - 2-03 [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] (Round 2) * Most points by one team in a match: '''25''' ** [[Louth GAA|Louth]] 8-25 - 2-03 [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] (Round 2) * Highest aggregate score: '''58 points''' ** [[Louth GAA|Louth]] 8-25 - 2-03 [[Cavan GAA|Cavan]] (Round 2) * Lowest aggregate score: '''23 points''' ** [[Warwickshire GAA|Warwickshire]] 1-11 - 0-09 [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] (Round 1)
==Miscellaneous==
* [[Derry county hurling team|Derry]] won their 1st championship in 5 years, last winning the [[2001 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship]].
==See also==
* [[2006 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship]] (Tier 1) * [[2006 Christy Ring Cup]] (Tier 2)
==References== {{Reflist}}
[[Category:2006 in hurling|Nicky Rackard Cup]] [[Category:Nicky Rackard Cup]]