Corofin appeal fine and bans

GALWAY champions Corofin are appealing the suspension of two of their members and the €5,100 fine dished out following the controversial Connacht SFC Club final defeat by St Brigid’s of Roscommon.

Corofin were fined €4,000 in relation to the behaviour of their players, mentors or supporters; €700 for having more than 24 players togged out on the day and €400 for being late on to the pitch. Corofin forward Justin Burke and selector Michael Donnellan were suspended for four weeks.

The Connacht Council announced the punishments last Friday after carrying out an investigation of events at the provincial final in Kiltoom on November 20. The investigation was launched by the Connacht Council after Mayo referee Liam Devenney, who had booked 14 players, was accosted by angry supporters, players and mentors at the end of the game.

Meanwhile, funding has been secured to complete Tyrone’s new £6.7m (€7.8m) training complex at Garvaghy. But county chairman Dominic McCaughey has hit out at the government for its failure to provide financial assistance.

“We can confidently report we have all the necessary finances in place to complete the Tyrone GAA Headquarters at Garvaghey,” McCaughey reveals in his annual report. But he claimed the project has been unfairly treated in its omission from a range of initiatives which have received public funding.

“We must express our criticism of the lack of financial support, to date, provided to the Tyrone GAA Headquarters by the Government of Northern Ireland through its various departments and associated bodies. We are aware of significant funding being readily available to projects, including Railway Preservation, the Grand Opera House and the purchase and refurbishment of a boat used to ferry passengers to the Titanic in 1912 Yet there cannot be any funding of the GAA’s heritage and culture in Tyrone.

Work is at an advanced stage on the construction of the complex near Ballygawley, which includes playing fields, ancillary building, and car park. As well as providing a training base for county teams in all codes and age groups, Garvaghy will become the new headquarters for the county board. It is due to open in 2013.