Long-time inteprovincial sponsor Martin Donnelly has cast doubt over his continuing patronage of the ailing championship competitions. Donnelly has suggested that a re-think of his largesse could be on the way if the upcoming football final, due to be staged in London, is not a success. This year's football decider will be staged in Ruislip on November 8th but Donnelly has questioned in his own mind the value of the competition given the dwindling attendances since he came on board as chief sponsor in 2001. "We have brought it this far," Donnelly explained. "Times are tough for all businesses now and all sponsorships have to be looked at very deeply but we won't look at this now until after the final. "You can be enthusiastic about it but you can't always be flogging a dead horse. "It's important to get a good crowd in London now, whatever about this weekend (fixtures). "I know London are going to make a big effort and I'm looking forward to it. "It certainly won't be for lack of effort on behalf of the London board anyway if we don't get a response. "I expect a reasonable crowd in Crossmaglen as they've always been keen on the series in Ulster." Tweet

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