Cork ref to handle Leitrim SHC final
October 17, 2012
John Sexton
Sexton, who was standby referee for the recent All-Ireland SHC final replay between Kilkenny and Galway, will make the 300-mile round trip to Pairc Sean Mac Diarmada to officiate the final between Carrick and Cluainín Iomáint, which throws in at 4.30pm.
So how did John end up being appointed to take charge of a county final so far away from home? He explained to The Irish Examiner: "It came through one of my umpires, Ciarán O'Regan, a referee himself. Ciarán worked in a radio station up there and he knows all those boys, he actually got the whole thing started - he was also the goalkeeper for Longford this year.
"They asked him if I'd be interested in doing it and I said fine, as long as it didn't clash with the Cork championship here, which it didn't. I've done games in Kerry as well and you notice the improvement in the standard over the years - I think it helps the game if you have experienced outside referees coming into developing counties."
While hurling is something of a minority sport in Leitrim, Sexton says he will be treating Saturday's decider the same as if it were an All-Ireland final.
"The way I look at it, this is as important as the Cork county final or an All-Ireland final. This a huge game to the teams and the players involved. The standard won't be as high as for those games, obviously, but these guys are still putting in a major effort and you have to give them your full respect. I'm bringing my regular team of umpires and we are heading up there on Friday night. We will have the same approach as we have for every other game." Tweet
