No marriage of convenience for furious Ardmore

ARDMORE GAA officials have blasted the Waterford County Board’s decision to fix their Waterford SHC relegation playoff against Mount Sion for Bank Holiday Monday.

Ardmore’s county star Declan Prendergast is getting married on Saturday with his brother Seamus, another member of the county team, as best man.

Many of the Ardmore team will be in attendance and club bosses feel it unfair to fix the game for Monday.

“It is a scandalous way to treat a man who has given so much to his club and county in both hurling and football,’’ a leading Ardmore official said yesterday. “The timing of this game against Mount Sion is all wrong and we are absolutely up in arms over it.’’

However county PRO Joe Cleary said that the board had little choice.

“Had there been agreement with Mount Sion about a new date we would have gone along with it, but in the absence of such an agreement the fixtures stands,’’ said Mr Cleary.

Mount Sion, on the other hand, are insistent that they were happy to facilitate Ardmore — but within reason.

A club spokesman said they had offered to bring the game forward to last weekend but that was not accepted, and they are now anxious to play the fixture rather than have their players “hanging around’’.

With so many county stars involved — the Prendergasts and Clinton Hennessy for Ardmore and the McGraths, Pat and Eoin, and Tony Browne for Mount Sion — it’s a showdown that has generated countywide interest.

It’s also a first time for title-laden ‘Sion, who top the role of honour with 34 championship wins, who find themselves in a relegation dogfight and just one defeat away from a drop to intermediate ranks.