All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1995
| Championship details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 30 April - 3 September 1995 |
| Teams | 19 |
| All-Ireland champions | |
| Winning team | Clare (2nd win) |
| Captain | Anthony Daly |
| Manager | Ger Loughnane |
| All-Ireland Finalists | |
| Losing team | Offaly |
| Captain | Johnny Pilkington |
| Manager | Éamonn Cregan |
| Provincial champions | |
| Munster | Clare |
| Leinster | Offaly |
| Ulster | Down |
| Connacht | Galway |
| Championship statistics | |
| No. matches played | 19 |
| Top Scorer |
 Johnny Dooley
|
| Player of the Year | Seánie McMahon |
| All-Star Team | See here |
|
← 1994
1996 →
|
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The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship of 1995 (known for the first time for sponsorship reasons as the Guinness Hurling Championship 1995) was the 109th staging of Ireland's premier hurling knock-out competition. Clare won the championship, beating Offaly 1-13 to 2-8 in the final at Croke Park, Dublin.
In 1994 Bank of Ireland became the first ever sponsor of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. Following the success of this deal it was decided that the hurling championship could also benefit from sponsorship. The decision, however, to award the sponsorship deal to Guinness was a controversial one, as there were concerns over the Gaelic Athletic Association's association with an alcoholic drinks company. Former President of the GAA, Dr. Mick Loftus, was one of the most vocal critics of the proposed sponsorship deal. At a meeting of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) Central Council on 6 May, the decision to make Guinness the sponsor was accepted almost unanimously. The sponsorship deal involved Guinness providing £3 million to the GAA over three years. £500,000 of this money would go to funding the championship, while a similar amount would go to the marketing and promotion of the game.
Prior to the opening of the championship former All-Ireland-winning journalists Seán Moran and Tom Humphries gave their predictions for the upcoming championship in the The Irish Times. Kilkenny were regarded as the strongest contenders for All-Ireland glory in 1995. They were the reigning National Hurling League champions and had won back-to-back championship titles from three successive final appearances between 1991 and 1993. Offaly, in spite of being reigning All-Ireland champions, were placed second to Kilkenny in the championship stakes. They faced a more difficult passage through the provincial series, however, an anticipated Leinster final meeting with Kilkenny was the only thing stopping the team from making it two-in-a-row. Following the trauma of their All-Ireland defeat the previous year, Limerick were still regarded as the brightest prospect in Munster. They were given the nod to retain their provincial crown and challenge, once again, for the All-Ireland title.
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