New management team in place as Barrs hurlers battle relegation

Former St Finbarrs manager Aidan Fitzpatrick against Glen Rovers in the Co-Op Stores Cork PSHC at Pairc Ui Chaoimh Picture: Eddie O'Hare

John Cremin is the new manager of the St Finbarr’s senior hurling team after Aidan Fitzpatrick stepped down last week.

Fitzpatrick and his management team resigned just days after St Finbarr’s suffered their second double-digit defeat of the Cork Premier SHC. Fitzpatrick was in his first year leading the club's senior hurlers, having succeeded former Cork hurler Ronan Curran as manager at the end of last year.

Club president John Cremin, who previously managed the Barrs senior hurlers in the middle of the last decade, has taken charge ahead of their final group game against Carrigtwohill on Saturday week, August 29. He is being assisted on the sideline by Barrs Óg chairman Sean McCarthy, Ger O’Regan, who was part of the Barr’s 2019 senior hurling management team, and Cork coach Ger Cunningham.

The new management oversaw their first training session with the players on Tuesday evening.

St Finbarr’s, county semi-finalists last year, lost their opening two games in Group C of the Cork Premier SHC to Glen Rovers and Na Piarsaigh by 14 and 12 points respectively.

Those two hammerings, suffered on successive weekends, means St Finbarr’s cannot progress to the knockout stages and, in fact, are currently in line to be involved in the relegation decider.

The relegation play-off will be contested between the two lowest-ranked teams - taking into account points won and scoring difference - across the three groups. Because of their -26 score difference, St Finbarr’s are the lowest-ranked team across the three groups heading into the final evening of games on Saturday week. Ballyhea and Bishopstown, who are bottom of Group A and B respectively, have score differences of -22 and -5.

Elsewhere, the rescheduled Cork Premier SFC colleges/divisions section semi-final between UCC and Carbery will take place on Thursday evening (Ovens, 7.30pm). The game was originally fixed for this evening but was pushed back a day because of the red weather alert for Cork issued by Met Éireann.

In the other semi-final, Duhallow were handed a walkover by Beara. The latter division said that “owing to a large number of injuries, Beara are not in a position to fulfill our County Championship game against Duhallow”.

The final of the colleges/divisions football section will be played this Sunday evening, with the hurling decider between Imokilly and UCC also fixed for Sunday (Páirc Uí Rinn, 7pm).