With our 2026 All-Ireland Finals line-ups almost complete, it is time to turn the spotlight on the dedicated officials who will be managing the game, tracking every pitch, and ensuring our showpiece games run smoothly.

While the focus will, rightly, be on the teams, the players and their management, the Referees and their umpires are an important part of the day too. Officiating an All-Ireland Final is a major honour. Over the next three days, we will reveal the appointed referees for each of our upcoming Finals Days.

We will begin today with our Women’s Finals. In a first for GAA Rounders, all three Women’s finals – Junior, Intermediate and Senior – will take place on the same day – Sunday 30 August – at the NGDC, Abbotstown, Dublin 15.

This will be a day to celebrate the women who play our sport, at all levels, and it’s shaping up to be a fantastic day of Rounders. Starting at 11am with our Junior final – between St. Kieran’s and St. Senan’s, continuing at 1pm with our Intermediate final between Galway City Rapparees and Elphin and culminating in our 3.30pm Senior Final between Breaffy and Limekiln.

Junior Women’s Final

Taking charge of the all-Limerick Junior derby is a man playing his Rounders west of the Shannon, though his journey began much further west. Originally from Philadelphia, the Galway City Rapparees Back Catcher, actor, and singer Jay Hall is our 2026 Junior Women’s Final Referee.

Jay began refereeing in 2025, taking charge of Junior fixtures across Connacht and Limerick, and rapidly demonstrated his sharp command of the Rule Book. After progressing to Junior quarter-finals and Intermediate semi-finals this season, Jay now takes on his first national decider.

Fun Fact: Jay’s referee match reports read like novels! Every single play, catch, and out is chronicled in meticulous detail. Other Referees take note – getting Jay’s reports is so entertaining we might just make that level of storytelling mandatory for 2027!

Intermediate Women’s Final

With the Intermediate final being an all-Connacht clash between Galway City Rapparees and Roscommon’s Elphin, an Ulster official steps in to take the reins. Multi All-Ireland winner, All-Star recipient, and Erne Eagles stalwart Darryl Dolan brings a wealth of experience to this game.

The Cavan team’s Senior Men’s pitcher, and sometime outfielder, returned from injury this season, showcasing his usual high standard across Senior Men and Senior Mixed campaigns while juggling refereeing duties.

Fun Fact: This is far from Darryl’s first All-Ireland final, either playing or officiating. When asked how many finals he has refereed over his career, his official answer was simply: “I dunno”—so we will safely assume it’s well into double figures!

Senior Women’s Final

The final game of the day sees four-in-a-row champions Breaffy of Mayo face Dublin’s Limekiln, and will be officiated by one of our most experienced senior referees, Carlow’s AnnMarie Brennan.

Representing Cúchulainn Rounders Club, with whom she has collected numerous national honours, AnnMarie has been officiating since her teenage years. Her extensive rule knowledge, calm game management, and long-standing dedication make her an ideal choice for the Senior decider.

Fun Fact: Officially on maternity leave following the arrival of baby Oisín in May, AnnMarie initially returned for a one-off refereeing appearance at the World Games in Waterford this July. Having caught the Refereeing bug once again, she offered to cover some local fixtures before answering the call for the Senior Women’s decider – and we are delighted she did!

Each of our Referees will have three base umpires to assist them. With a wealth of experience, knowledge and skill behind them, we know that all three Women’s finals will run smoothly and show spectators just how great our game is.

On Wednesday we will reveal the Referees who will be responsible for our three Men’s finals on Sunday 6 September in Offaly GAA’s Centre of Excellence in Kilcormac.