Stradbally won't be making a point
December 07, 2004
GAA umpires have come under fire again after claims by Waterford club Stradbally that they were denied a first half point in last Sunday's Munster club football final at Thurles.
However, unlike UCD who had a similar grievence in their Leinster club hurling final defeat to James Stephens seven days earlier, Stradbally don't want to make an issue of the incident as it may interfere with their preparations for next Sunday's replay in Kilmallock.
A club spokesman said television footage clearly shows Niall Curran's 20th minute shot went inside the post. But despite Curran's protestations, the umpire signalled the ball wide. Had it been awarded, Stradbally would have won by 0-10 to 0-9.
"In the context of the final scoreline, it's a crucially important moment in the game," said the spokesman. "But it's all history now.
"We are gearing ourselves up for Sunday's replay which we are very hopeful of winning."
Meanwhile, Stradbally manager Sean Ahearne has expressed disappointment at the choice of venue for the replay.
"We have never played in Kilmallock and would prefer to be playing on the wide open spaces of Semple Stadium. We just don't know why the venue has been changed, but it's not something we will be losing any sleep over between now and Sunday," he said.
Most Read Stories