With throw-in set for 2pm, the game was called off at 12:26.
Is there anything more frustrating than making a really long trek to an away game only for it to be cancelled not long after you reach the ground/pitch?
Players hate it and fans are not that keen on it either. Matches being scheduled over winter and early spring are always fighting against the possibility of postponements and delays but the weather has played particular havoc this weekend.
Allianz Football League games involving Cavan, Meath, Derry, Offaly, Fermanagh, Sligo, Monaghan and Kerry have all been postponed until later dates. Cavan’s match with Meath was put back due to a waterlogged pitch but overnight snowfall is the culprit for the three Sunday games being chalked off.
Annoyingly, players and fans from the likes of Offaly and Kerry were already heading to the away grounds or were there already. Fermanagh vs. Sligo was called off at 9am this morning [2pm throw-in was scheduled] but some fans may have travelled up for an overnight on Saturday. These are the estimated round-trips players, coaches and fans are facing today:
- Kerry (to/from Monaghan) – 9 hours
- Offaly (Derry) – 8 hours
- Fermanagh (Sligo) – 2 hours
And that is if they live centrally and not far from the main travel arteries. Long hauls with no game or scores to last in the memory.
The late postponements of these games has left an unpleasant taste and now adds to an almighty fixture pile-up.
Former Kerry goalkeeper Brendan Kealy spoke for so many GAA fans, and players, when he sent an update from Celtic Park in Derry. On the coaching panel with the Offaly footballers, the All Star goalie declared:
‘GAA insistent on having its busiest fixture list during the worst months of the year for weather with no contingency plans!!
‘Players all over the country having to rearrange work, personal lives etc. again. This game called off at 12.26 today!!’
Kealy signed off with hashtags ‘joke’, ‘actions louder than words’ and ‘GAA’.
GAA insistent on having its busiest fixture list during the worst months of the year for weather with no contingency plans!! Players all over the country having to rearrange work, personal lives etc. again. This game called off at 12.26 today!! #JOKE #actionslouderthanwords #gaa pic.twitter.com/vWT7QDF7Ph
— Brendan Kealy (@brendankealy) February 11, 2018
His words will hit home with an awful lot of people across the country.
The bad weather can’t be helped and many GAA grounds are not able to cope with a bad batch, but as we live in Ireland we can’t claim to be surprised by these conditions in January and February.
The postponement of so many games of late has left the FBD, McKenna and O’Byrne Cup competitions all with finals that need to be played. The Allianz Leagues are set to conclude by the end of March and the only down week already has a slate of tertiary cup competitions booked in.
It is going to get messy, and we’re not just talking about the pitches.
