"The county board don't realise what it takes to get ready for an All-Ireland final"

August 20, 2014

Tipperary's Declan Fanning

Former Tipperary defender Declan Fanning is none too impressed with the County Board's decision not to postpone this weekend's scheduled club fixtures.

10 players who started last Sunday's All-Ireland SHC semi-final victory over Cork are due out on club duty and 2010 All-Ireland winner Fanning told Tipp FM: "I think the county board don't realise what it takes to get ready for an All-Ireland final.

"I'm only really speaking from my own experience back in 2010. After we beat Waterford in the All-Ireland semi-final, I then had to play with Killenaule on the Tuesday night in the South semi-final, which we won after extra-time, and then had to play the South final on the Sunday.

"On personal experience, that affected me going into the All-Ireland. A week after, when a lot of players were on a good week, I was nearly on a rest week. You can't really count the week of the All-Ireland final because that's only tapering off, getting together, team meetings, that kind of stuff.

"I'd just love if the county board gave this bunch of players everything they can to try and win this All-Ireland. And it would be a big help if they considered calling off the games at the weekend."

Tipp chairman Sean Nugent countered: "Declan made a lot of valid points. There's always the danger of injury and that's the greatest fear that I have - that any player on the panel will get a serious injury.

"But the position is like this, and maybe Declan and some people out there don't understand the situation, we were also involved in football and quite a number of club championship games had to fall by the wayside.

"We have no choice now but to play catch-up as best we can and actually even playing the games at the weekend may not be sufficient to get through our fixtures programmes in time for the Munster club fixtures."


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