{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Infobox hurling championship | name = 2015 Nicky Rackard Cup | image = | imagesize = | caption = | dates = 2 May<br />– 6 June 2015 | teams = 8 | champions = [[Roscommon GAA|Roscommon]] | count = | runners-up = [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] | matches = 14 | goals = | points = | top scorer = | previous year =2014 | previous tournament =2014 Nicky Rackard Cup | next year = 2016 | next tournament = 2016 Nicky Rackard Cup }}
The '''2015 Nicky Rackard Cup''' (tier 3) was the eleventh staging of the [[Nicky Rackard Cup]] hurling championship since its establishment by the [[Gaelic Athletic Association]] in 2005. The cup competition began on 2 May 2015 and culminated on 13 June 2015. The bottom two teams will play off with the loser playing the winner of the [[2015 Lory Meagher Cup]] (tier 4).
[[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] were the [[2014 Nicky Rackard Cup|defending champions]] and they participated in the competition again after opting not to face Down in the [[2014 Christy Ring Cup]] relegation promotion playoff.
Longford entered the 2015 competition after defeating Sligo in [[2014 Nicky Rackard Cup]] Promotion/relegation playoff.
[[Roscommon GAA|Roscommon]] won the title after defeating [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] by 2–12 to 1–14 in the final.
==Format== *Eight teams play in Round 1. *The Round 1 winners advance to Round 2A. The Round 1 losers go into Round 2B. *The Round 2A winners advance to the semi-finals. The Round 2A losers go into the quarter-finals. *The Round 2B winners advance to the quarter-finals. The Round 2B losers go into the relegation playoff. *The quarter-final winners advance to the semi-final. *The semi-final winners advance to the final. *The final winners receive the [[Nicky Rackard Cup]] (tier 3) and play the losers of the [[Christy Ring Cup]] (tier 2) relegation playoff for the right to play in the 2016 Christy Ring Cup. *The Round 2B losers play a relegation playoff. The losing team plays the winner of the Lory Meagher Cup (tier 4) with the winner playing in the 2016 Nicky Rackard Cup and the losing team playing in the 2016 [[Lory Meagher Cup]].
== Teams ==
=== General Information === {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" ![[County (Gaelic games)|County]] !Cup Titles !Last Cup Title !Position in [[2014 Nicky Rackard Cup|2014]] Championship |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Armagh.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Armagh county hurling team|Armagh]] |2 |2012 |Lost relegation playoff ([[Christy Ring Cup]]) |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Donegal.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Donegal county hurling team|Donegal]] |1 |2013 |Semi-finals |- | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours_of_Fingal.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Fingal county hurling team|Fingal]] |0 | - |Runners-up |- | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours_of_Longford.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Longford GAA|Longford]] |0 | - |Champions ([[Lory Meagher Cup]]) |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Louth.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Louth county hurling team|Louth]] |0 | - |Qualifier round 2 |- | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours_of_Monaghan.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] |0 | - |Qualifier round 1 |- | style="text-align:left" |[[File:Colours_of_Roscommon.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Roscommon county hurling team|Roscommon]] |1 |2007 |Semi-finals |- | style="text-align:left" | [[File:Colours_of_Tyrone.svg|border|20x20px]] [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |1 |2014 |Champions |}
==Round 1==
{{football box collapsible |date = 2 May 2015 |time = 13:00 |round = Round 1 |team1 = [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] |score = 0-11 - 1-12 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/hurling/2015/0502/698337-nicky-rackard-cup/ Report] |team2 = [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |goals1 = L Henderson (0-6), C Matthewson (0-2), J Boyle (0-1), S McVeigh (0-1), J O'Loughlin (0-1) |goals2 = D Casey (1-7), C Grogan (0-2), J Kelly (0-2), S Grogan (0-1) |stadium = [[Letterkenny]] |attendance = |referee = O Elliott }}
{{football box collapsible |date = 2 May 2015 |time = 17:00 |round = Round 1 |team1 = [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] |score = 4-10 - 0-10 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/hurling/2015/0502/698337-nicky-rackard-cup/ Report] |team2 = [[Longford GAA|Longford]] |goals1 = P Dowdall (3-1), S Lambe (1-2), R Meegan (0-3), M Murphy (0-1), E MacSuibhne (0-1), N Garland (0-1), M Treanor (0-1) |goals2 = J O'Brien (0-7), L Kelly (0-2), C Kavanagh (0-1) |stadium = [[Clones, County Monaghan|Clones]] |attendance = |referee = G McGrath }} {{football box collapsible |date = 2 May 2015 |time = 17:00 |round = Round 1 |team1 = [[Fingal GAA|Fingal]] |score = 0-09 - 3-12 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/hurling/2015/0502/698337-nicky-rackard-cup/ Report] |team2 = [[Roscommon GAA|Roscommon]] |goals1 = J M Sheridan (0-6), D Butterly (0-1), N Ring (0-1), C O'Flynn (0-1) |goals2 = J Fallon (1-6), R O'Meara (1-1), C Kenny (1-0), T Seale (0-1), C Dolan (0-1), C Egan (0-1), A Murphy (0-1), J Coyne (0-1) |stadium = [[Swords, County Dublin|Swords]] |attendance = |referee = P Murphy (Carlow) }} {{football box collapsible |date = 2 May 2015 |time = 17:00 |round = Round 1 |team1 = [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] |score = 2-16 - 2-11 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/hurling/2015/0502/698337-nicky-rackard-cup/ Report] |team2 = [[Louth GAA|Louth]] |goals1 = R Gaffney (1-6), E McGuinness (1-0), D Coulter (0-3), C Gorman (0-2), C Devlin (0-1), S Renaghan (0-1),C Carvill (0-1), M Moan (0-1), D Carville (0-1) |goals2 = L Dawn (0-8), S Connelly (1-1), R Maher (1-1), G Smyth (0-1) |stadium = Athletic Grounds |attendance = |referee = C Cunning }}
Winners progress to Round 2A. Losers go to Round 2B.
==Round 2== ===Round 2A=== {{football box collapsible |date = 9 May 2015 |time = 14:00 |round =Round 2A |team1 = [[Roscommon GAA|Roscommon]] |score = 1-24 - 0-17 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0509/699992-nicky-rackard-cup-round-up-rossies-march-to-semis/ Report] |team2 = [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] |goals1 = Gerry Fallon (0-7), C Egan (1-3), J Moran (0-3), J Coyne (0-3), C Dolan (0-2), M Kelly (0-1), T Seale (0-1), Gary Fallon (0-1), A Murphy (0-1), C Kenny (0-1), R O'Meara (0-1) |goals2 = R Meegan (0-8), S Lambe (0-3), N Garland (0-2), M Treanor (0-2), D Crowe (0-1), H Byrne (0-1) |stadium = [[Athleague]] |attendance = |referee = J Clarke }} {{football box collapsible |date = 9 May 2015 |time = 17:00 |round =Round 2A |team1 = [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |score = 0-20 - 3-17 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0509/699992-nicky-rackard-cup-round-up-rossies-march-to-semis/ Report] |team2 = [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] |goals1 = D Casey (0-9), C Grogan (0-3), M Winters (0-2), S Og Grogan (0-1), P McHugh (0-1), T Morgan(0-1), J Kelly (0-1), M Mulgrew (0-1), G Gilmore (0-1) |goals2 = C Carvill (2-1), R Gaffney (0-6), M Moan (0-3), E McGuinness (1-0), C Corvan (0-3), D Coulter (0-2), K McKernan (0-1), S Gaffney (0-1) |stadium = [[Carrickmore]] |attendance = |referee = E Hassan }}
Winners progress to the semi-finals. Losers go into the quarter-finals.
===Round 2B=== {{football box collapsible |date = 9 May 2015 |time = 15:00 |round =Round 2B |team2 = [[Longford GAA|Longford]] |score = 4-21 - 1-9 |report =[http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0509/699992-nicky-rackard-cup-round-up-rossies-march-to-semis/ Report] |team1 = [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] |goals2 = E Donnellan (0-6), J O'Brien (1-0), M Coyle (0-2), J Casey (0-1) |goals1 = C Matthewson (1-16), R McDermott (2-2), S McVeigh (1-1), B Lafferty (0-2) |stadium = [[Pearse Park (Longford)|Pearse Park]] |attendance = |referee = Justin Heffernan }}
{{football box collapsible |date = 9 May 2015 |time = 17:00 |round =Round 2B |team1 = [[Louth GAA|Louth]] |score = 2-08 - 1-21 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0509/699992-nicky-rackard-cup-round-up-rossies-march-to-semis/ Report] |team2 = [[Fingal GAA|Fingal]] |goals1 = L Dwan (1-5), A Mackin (1-0), G Smyth (0-1), S Conneally (0-1), S Callan (0-1) |goals2 = J M Sheridan (0-11), P McAllister (1-1), R McGarry (0-2), E O'Connor (0-2), C O'Flynn (0-2), D Hattie (0-1), S O'Brien (0-1), D Butterly (0-1), |stadium = [[Dowdallshill]] |attendance = |referee = Sean Cleere }}
Winners go into the quarter-finals. Losers go into the Relegation Playoff
==Quarter-finals==
{{football box collapsible |date = 16 May 2015 |time = 15:00 |round = Quarter-Finals |team1 = [[Monaghan GAA|Monaghan]] |score = 2-13 - 6-12 |report = [http://www.hoganstand.com/Tyrone/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=237388/ Report] |team2 = [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] |goals1 = R Meegan (0-6), N Garland (2-0), S Lambe (0-3), C McKenna (0-1), D Crowe (0-1), E MacSuibhne (0-1), F Rafter (0-1) |goals2 = R McDermott (4-0), C Mathewson (1-4), S McVeigh (1-2), K Campbell (0-4), J Boyle (0-1), B Lafferty (0-1) |stadium = [[Clones, County Monaghan|Clones]] |attendance = |referee = Alan Nash }} {{football box collapsible |date = 16 May 2015 |time = 16:00 |round = Quarter-Finals |team1 = [[Fingal GAA|Fingal]] |score = 0-20 - 1-21 AET |report = [http://www.hoganstand.com/Tyrone/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=237388/ Report] |team2 = [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |goals1 = J M Sheridan (0-8), P McAllister (0-3), E O'Connor (0-3), S O'Brien (0-2), C O'Flynn (0-2), D Hattie (0-1), B McCarthy (0-1) |goals2 = D Casey (0-10), M Mulgrew (1-5), C Grogan (0-3), G Gilmore (0-2), A Kelly (0-1) |stadium = [[Swords, County Dublin|Swords]] |attendance = |referee = Patrick Murphy }}
==Semi-finals==
{{football box collapsible |date = 23 May 2015 |time = 15:00 |round = Semi-Finals |team1 = [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] |score = 0-14 - 1-16 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0523/703252-nicky-rackard/] |team2 = [[Roscommon GAA|Roscommon]] |goals1 = |goals2 = |stadium = Carrickmore |attendance = |referee = Liam Mc Auley }} {{football box collapsible |date = 23 May 2015 |time = 16:00 |round = Semi-Finals |team1 = [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] |score = 1-19 - 1-12 |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0523/703252-nicky-rackard/]|team2 = [[Donegal GAA|Donegal]] |goals1 = |goals2 = |stadium = Athletic Grounds |attendance = |referee = Colum Cunning }}
==Final==
{{football box collapsible |date = 6 June 2015 |time = 13:30 [[British Summer Time|BST]] |round = |team1 = [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] |score = 1-14 - 2-12 |report = [http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/hurling/michael-kelly-delivers-killer-blow-for-roscommon-335247.html Report] |team2 = [[Roscommon GAA|Roscommon]] |goals1 = R Gaffney (0-8, eight frees), C Carvill (1-0), D Coulter (0-2), N Curry (one 65), D Carvill, C Corvan and E McGuinness 0-1 each |goals2 = A Murphy (1-1), J Fallon (0-4, four frees), M Kelly (1-0, one free), J Moran (0-3), J Coyne (0-2), K Kilkenny and C Egan (0-1 each) |stadium = [[Croke Park]] |attendance = |referee = John O Brien }}
==Relegation play-off==
{{football box collapsible |date = 23 May 2015 |time = 15:00 |round = Relegation play-off |team1 = [[Longford GAA|Longford]] |score = 2-20 - 2-16 AET |report = [http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2015/0523/703252-nicky-rackard/] |team2 = [[Louth GAA|Louth]] |goals1 = |goals2 = |stadium = [[Mullingar]] |attendance = |referee = John O Brien }}
==External links== GAA Fixtures 2015 [https://web.archive.org/web/20150505042139/http://www.gaa.ie/fixtures-and-results/national-fixtures/christy-ring-nicky-rackard-lory-meagher/nicky-rackard]
{{Nicky Rackard Cup}}
[[Category:2015 in hurling|Nicky Rackard Cup]] [[Category:Nicky Rackard Cup]]