The Connacht Council of the GAA have issued a statement in response to last week’s controversy when Kilmore had to play their Connacht club intermediate championship game less than 24 hours after they had won the Roscommon title after a replay against Oran. The Kilmore club were also angry that a request to postpone the game because of the death of club legend Frank Dennehy was refused.
The statement says that the Connacht club fixtures were known in November of 2015 and that each county board could have organised its competitions accordingly. The Connacht Council also state that no official request for a postponement of the game was received because of the county final or because of the passing of Frank Dennehy.
Part of the statement reads:
“Concerning the controversies over the scheduling of recent Connacht Club Championship games Comhairle Chonnacht wishes to confirm that they fully believe that club players should be presented with a fixtures schedule which gives certainty and regularity. To this end Connacht CCC issued all counties with the full Adult and Under Age Connacht GAA Programme for 2016 as early as 15th November 2015.”
“Regarding the recent Intermediate Championship games between the Galway and Roscommon champions it is important to clarify a number of points;
• Connacht CCC, at its meeting on 6th October, acceded to a request from both Galway and Roscommon to bring forward the Preliminary Round of the Intermediate Football Championship by 1 day in order to avoid a clash with the Galway & Roscommon Senior Football Finals.
• Subsequently draws in the Intermediate Football and Hurling Finals in Roscommon and the inability of Roscommon CCC to get agreement from the clubs to play a replay mid-week and under lights created the possibility that Roscommon would not be represented in the Intermediate Football Championship.
• Negotiations between the Officers of Connacht CCC and the Monivea Abbey Club and Roscommon County Board paved the way for an agreement to play the game on the original date of 23rd October.
• On the morning of the game (11.13 am) a conversation took place between the Roscommon County Secretary and the Provincial Secretary at which it was agreed that a minutes silence would be observed at the Roscommon County Final and the Connacht Intermediate Football game in honour of the late Frank Dennehy.
We wish to categorically deny that there was ever any request to Connacht CCC by the Roscommon County Board or Kilmore GAA Club to postpone the game because of the replay of the county final or as a mark of respect to the President of Roscommon GAA and Kilmore Club, the late Frank Dennehy”.
