Hughes furious as ‘stubborn’ Ulster clash with Euro final
The clash of Ulster’s football heavyweights throws in at 7.30pm on Saturday week, just 15 minutes before the action begins at Wembley where Manchester United take on Barcelona.
The Leinster Council avoided a clash by starting the Offaly and Wexford football championship clash at 5.30pm.
Down star Hughes believes the Ulster Council’s inaction will have grave consequences, predicting few fans will turn out at Morgan Athletic Grounds.
“The Ulster Council should definitely have moved the game,” he said.
“I don’t understand that. I just can’t understand why they did that. Why take money off the gate? Why take people away from the game when there’s absolutely no need to do it? Why not put it on at 3 o’clock on the Saturday or why not put it on at 5 o’clock even? Why not let people go to the game at 5 o’clock and go home or go to the bars then? Economically speaking, from a financial point of view, it just doesn’t make sense.
“We’re living in the 21st century. I can’t understand the thinking behind it. At the end of the day, realistically, FIFA aren’t going to move their match so the GAA have to. We’re a small organisation, we have to make the most of the population we have so that people will actually go to the game. They’re cutting off their nose, they really are.
“You’ll have your hardcore supporters but it probably won’t be anything more than would go to a national league game. It’s astonishing.”
Proud Ulster Council officials, presumably, aren’t keen to concede ground to their sporting rivals but Hughes believes it’s a non-argument.
“They had no problem conceding when it came to opening up the ground (Croke Park) to other major sports,” he noted. “That’s the reality. And they were bigger issues, far, far bigger issues and rightly so, so changing a throw-in time, I just don’t see the big problem.”
In 2002, the Ulster Council were left embarrassed after going ahead with the meeting of Donegal and Derry in the Ulster championship while extra-time was being played in Ireland’s World Cup clash with Spain.
“Did they not learn anything from the World Cup?” asked Hughes. “There was nobody at it (Donegal/Derry game). You learn from your past mistakes.”
Hughes believes the majority of players share his view though Armagh’s Steven McDonnell recently claimed the fixture should not be moved, arguing “the GAA have to show that what comes first is the Championship”.
A neat solution would have been to simply bring forward the mouthwatering meeting of the 2010 All-Ireland finalists, Down, and 2008 Ulster champions Armagh and use it as a glamour game to launch the championship.
“Yeah, they could have,” agreed Hughes. “I’m not saying Donegal/Antrim was not going to be a big seller but it’s something they need to think about. Why not have a big championship opener in Croke Park, a double header even? Dublin are obviously the marquee team and a marquee name, why not let them open the championship? Or the All-Ireland finalists last year get to open the championship.”
Hughes, speaking at the Na Fianna club grounds in Dublin at the launch of the Ulster Bank’s club initiative GAA Force, favours an open draw format to level the playing field.
“Ulster is very difficult,” said the 2010 footballer of the year nominee.
“Galway are in the semi-final of Connacht already whereas we’ve a preliminary round, quarter-final, semi-final and it’s just so difficult. By the time you get to the final there’s that much intensity and build up and it’s difficult to prolong that through the season.”
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