Cavan must explain training game

THE GAA will send a letter to the Cavan County Board this week demanding an explanation for Sunday night’s county training game at Breffni Park.

A Croke Park official confirmed that Cavan will have to clarify the senior footballers’ activities on their all-weather pitch following the Irish Examiner’s report that they broke the Association’s inter-county winter training ban.

“A letter looking for clarification will be sent to Cavan in relation to the newspaper report,” said the official.

A number of players from last year’s panel were identifiable participating in the training game.

Under the winter training ban rule, nobody who featured on the previous season’s inter-county squad is permitted to play in any training games during November and December.

The Irish Examiner understands that at least one 2010 panel member, who was in the county board’s understanding supposed to be involved in rehabilitation work at Breffni Park, played in the game.

However, Cavan PRO Declan Woods last night claimed the county board were unaware that any of Tommy Carr’s 2010 panel were involved.

“As a county board, we are not aware that any player from the previous year’s panel took part,” he said.

According to Woods, the game was organised by co-managers Val Andrews and Terry Hyland as a trial match between two development sides. Under the guidelines of the ban, new managers are permitted two trial games during the closed season providing they feature no player from the outgoing panel.

“A trial game was to take place a couple of weeks ago but because of the snow it was rescheduled for the next available time, which was last Sunday.

“We were under quite an amount of pressure to get it done because the Ulster Council were looking for a Cavan panel for the McKenna Cup, which was supposed to have been in Wednesday.

“This was a chance for them (the management) to see the tail-end of what would be making up that panel.

“It is also our intention, under the rule, to have another one of these games before Christmas and that will probably also take place on Breffni Park’s 3G pitch.”

Any county found to have contravened Rule 6.43 of the GAA’s Official Code faces losing a percentage of their gate receipts from the home games in the league.