Clare v Cork game still stands

Clare’s request that this Wednesday’s Munster senior league fixture with Cork be deferred has been turned down and the fixture will go ahead in Sixmilebridge at 7.30p.m. Cork have already qualified for next Sunday’s final where their opponents will be either Clare, who are the competition holders or Limerick. Victory for Clare over Cork this Wednesday evening will see the Banner side into the final.

Joint clare managers Donal Moloney and Gerry O’Connor stated after last Sunday’s win over Waterford that they had made it clear from the outset that they did not want to play this Wednesday. “We have thirteen players involved in Fitzgibbon cup (third level colleges) games this week and we cannot ask these players to play three senior games in one week, then play Fitzgibbon and then ask them to play a fourth senior game against Cork. We cannot ask some players to play five games in ten days and we are not going to torture out players”, Donal Moloney said

According to Gerry O’Connor, Clare “have a panel of 27, we have used them as best and as efficiently as we can for the last three games. If 13 of those are playing Fitzgibbon which they will be in a full blooded championship it will be very difficult for us to put out a meaningful team on Wednesday”.

However efforts  to have the game changed failed and it is understood that Cork strongly resisted any move of the fixture

Clare and Cork  will meet in the opening round of the Allianz league at Pairc Ui Rinn on Saturday February 11.

By Seamus Hayes