Carlow football manager Turlough O'Brien faces a summer in the stands after being handed a 20-week suspension by the Central Hearings Committee.

And in a potentially championship-derailing triple blow, coach Stephen Poacher and midfielder Brendan Murphy have also been slapped with twelve-week bans.

The Central Competitions Control Committee took disciplinary action against O’Brien, alleging that he was guilty of “minor physical inference with a referee” and “threatening conduct towards a referee” after Carlow’s damaging one-point national league Division Three defeat to Down on March 16th.

He denied the charges and opted to take the case to the CHC, who found the first charge not proven but found the Carlow manager guilty of threatening conduct towards referee James Bermingham, imposing a 20-week ban. which would effectively rule O’Brien out of training and sideline duties for the rest of the season.

Meanwhile, Poacher’s and Murphy's hearings with the CHC had a similar result – “minor physical inference with a referee” unproven and “threatening conduct towards a referee” proven. They have both been issued with twelve-week bans.

The suspensions are not yet set in stone, however, as all three can take their cases to the Central Appeals Committee. And surely will.

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