Who will it be: Kilkenny or Limerick?- The stats behind the All-Ireland Final

Thirteen weeks and 33 games later, the 2022 GAA hurling All-Ireland championship has reached the final where Kilkenny take on Limerick in Croke Park on Sunday (3.30pm). Cork’s Colm Lyons will referee the clash, his first time taking charge of the biggest game of the year.

Kilkenny are bidding for their 37th All-Ireland title while Limerick are seeking their 11th and their first three-in-a-row.

Limerick are unbeaten in their six championship games to date (five wins and a draw), while Kilkenny have won five and lost two of their seven games, going under to Galway and Wexford in the Leinster ‘round robin.

PATHS TO THE FINAL

KILKENNY

Kilkenny 5-23, Westmeath 1-19 (Leinster SHC)

Kilkenny 2-34, Laois 1-14 (Leinster SHC)

Galway 1-24, Kilkenny 3-17 (Leinster SHC)

Kilkenny 3-25, Dublin 0-17 (Leinster SHC)

Wexford 1-22, Kilkenny 1-18 (Leinster SHC)

Kilkenny 0-22, Galway 0-17 (Leinster final)

Kilkenny 2-26, Clare 0-20 (All-Ireland semi-final)

Played: 7. Won: 5. Lost: 2.

LIMERICK

Limerick 2-25, Cork 1-17 (Munster SHC)

Limerick 0-30, Waterford 2-21 (Munster SHC)

Limerick 3-21, Tipperary 0-23 (Munster SHC)

Limerick 1-21, Clare 0-24 (Munster SHC)

Limerick 1-29, Clare 0-29 aet (Munster final)

Limerick 0-27, Galway 1-21 (All-Ireland semi-final)

Played: 6. Won: 5. Drew: 1.

Top scorers

Kilkenny

TJ Reid: 2-56 (0-42 frees, 0-3 65s)

Adrian Mullen: 0-25

Eoin Cody: 2-14

Martin Keoghan: 4-3

Alan Murphy: 0-15 (0-10 frees)

Aaron Gillane: 3-40 (0-22 frees)

Diarmaid Byrnes: 0-31 (0-24 frees, 0-2 65s)

Gearóid Hegarty: 1-11

Tom Morrissey: 0-12

Seamus Flanagan: 0-11

David Reidy: 0-11 (0-4 frees)

Did you know?

Limerick are bidding to join an exclusive club, occupied by counties that have won three successive All-Ireland titles. It was previously achieved by Kilkenny in 1911, 12 and 13 and 2006, 07 and 08; Cork in 1892, 93 and 94; 1941, 42 and 43; 1952, 53 and 54 and 1976, 77 and 78; Tipperary in 1898, 99 and 1900; 1949, 50 and 51.

Brian Cody, who is in his 24th season as Kilkenny manager, leads the Cats into an All-Ireland final for the 19th time. They have won 11, lost five and drawn two of the previous 18. Under his watch, it’s 6-1 to Kilkenny in championship meetings with Limerick.

John Kiely is in his sixth season as Limerick manager and is bidding to lead them to a fourth All-Ireland win.

Limerick have won their last two All-Ireland finals by a total of 27 points (11 v Waterford 2020, 16 v Cork 2022).

Limerick’s last defeat in the championship was in 2019 when they were beaten by a point by Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final. Since then they have gone 15 games unbeaten.

This is only the second time in the last 10 years that the Leinster and Munster champions have met in the All-Ireland final. The only other meeting was in 2016 when Tipperary beat Kilkenny.

PREVIOUS MEETINGS

Kilkenny and Limerick have met 14 times in the championship: Kilkenny have won nine times to Limerick’s five. They have met in eight All-Ireland finals, each winning four apiece.

2019: Kilkenny 1-21, Limerick 2-17 (All-Ireland semi-final)

2018: Limerick 0-27, Kilkenny 1-22 (All-Ireland quarter-final)

2017: Kilkenny 0-20, Limerick 0-17 (All-Ireland qualifier)

2014: Kilkenny 2-13, Limerick 0-17 (All-Ireland semi-final)

2012: Kilkenny 4-16, Limerick 1-16 (All-Ireland quarter-final)

2007: Kilkenny 2-19, Limerick 1-15 (All-Ireland final)

2005: Kilkenny 0-18, Limerick 0-13 (All-Ireland quarter-final)

1974: Kilkenny 3-19, Limerick 1-13 (All-Ireland final)

1973: Limerick 1-21, Kilkenny 1-14 (All-Ireland final)

1940: Limerick 3-7, Kilkenny 1-7 (All-Ireland final)

1936: Limerick 5-6, Kilkenny 1-5 (All-Ireland final)

1935: Kilkenny 2-5, Limerick 2-4 (All-Ireland final)

1933: Kilkenny 1-7, Limerick 0-6 (All-Ireland final)

1897: Limerick 3-4, Kilkenny 2-4 (All-Ireland final)

KILKENNY IN ALL-IRELAND FINALS UNDER BRIAN CODY

WON: 11

2000: Kilkenny 5-15, Offaly 1-14

2002: Kilkenny 2-20, Clare 0-19

2003: Kilkenny 1-14, Cork 1-11

2006: Kilkenny 1-16, Cork 1-13

2007: Kilkenny 2-19, Limerick 1-15

2008: Kilkenny 3-30, Waterford 1-13

2009: Kilkenny 2-22, Tipp 0-23

2011: Kilkenny 2-17, Tipp 1-16

2012: Kilkenny 3-22, Galway 3-11 (Replay)

2014: Kilkenny 2-17, Tipperary 2-14 (Replay)

2015: Kilkenny 1-22, Galway 1-18

LOST: 5

1999: Cork 0-13, Kilkenny 0-12

2004: Cork 0-17, Kilkenny 0-9

2010: Tipperary 4-17, Kilkenny 1-18

2016: Tipp 2-29, Kilkenny 2-20

2019: Tipp 3-25, Kilkenny 0-20

DRAWN: 2

2012: Kilkenny 0-19, Galway 2-13

2014: Kilkenny 3-22, Tipperary 1-28

KILKENNY’S RECORD

UNDER BRIAN CODY

1999: Leinster champs

2000: Leinster and

All-Ireland winners

2001: Leinster

2002: Leinster, All-Ireland

2003: Leinster, All-Ireland

2004: Beaten AI finalists

2005: Leinster

2006: Leinster, All-Ireland

2007: Leinster, All-Ireland

2008: Leinster, All-Ireland

2009: Leinster, All-Ireland

2010: Leinster

2011: Leinster, All-Ireland

2012: All-Ireland

2013: AI quarter-finalists

2014: Leinster, All-Ireland

2015: Leinster, All-Ireland

2016: Leinster

2017: Beaten AI qualifiers

2018: Beaten AI quarter-finalists

2019: Beaten AI finalists

2020: Leinster

2021: Leinster

2022: Leinster

Total: 18 Leinster titles, 11 All-Irelands

LIMERICK’S CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD UNDER JOHN KIELY

2018: All-Ireland champions

2019: Munster champions

2020: Munster, All-Ireland

2021: Munster, All-Ireland

2022: Munster

Total: Four Munster titles, three All-Irelands