Camogie ‘coin toss’ deferred

Camogie chiefs have deferred the draw for deciding the All-Ireland senior championship quarter-finals, following appeals by both Clare and Dublin.

Last week, it was confirmed that a Clare victory over Derry, in Ennis, on Sunday, would result in a coin toss with Dublin, to decide which of the two counties would progress to the last eight of the competition and face Wexford.

The stance sparked a massive backlash, but Camogie Association officials insisted that the procedure was agreed on by the county boards.

However, in the wake of Clare’s 4-19 to 1-6 win, camogie officials said the draw would not take place, as the two counties had appealed.

Clare boss, Colm Honan, described the background as “ridiculous... We, as a team, we didn’t really dwell on it at all. We said we have to win this game. That was the way we were looking at it. We knew that the county board had a meeting and that they were going to object to the idea that a team would go forward on a toss of a coin, in a championship, which we all thought was pretty ridiculous. So our concern really was the victory here. But, I suppose, in fairness, at the back of our minds was the idea that, after all our efforts, they could still toss a coin. So Clare County Board have appealed that decision and so have Dublin, so we will wait to hear the result of that”.

He added: “The rule was very ambiguous in its interpretation. I was looking carefully, myself, and it said it could be looked at as total number of goals scored would be the deciding factor, or, if there wasn’t any significant difference, that the toss of a coin would be the last thing. Hopefully, by Monday evening, there will be some kind of resolution to the whole problem and we have asked the girls to train on Tuesday and Thursday of next week,” Honan said.