Why is the Munster Championship dancing to the beat of Ed Sheeran?

Crowds on the pitch and in the Main South Stand at Pairc Ui Chaoimh for a Rod Stewart concert in May 2019. Picture: Larry Cummins

Last Tuesday Cork manager Kieran Kingston met the press to chat about Saturday evening’s Allianz Hurling League clash between his side and Clare (Páirc Uí Chaoimh, 5pm).

The abolition of the water break was raised and Kingston remarked: “We’re not sure if there’ll be more changes to this going into the championship... I believe they’re looking at letting someone in maybe once or twice a half rather than someone running in every few minutes.”

Such a change would mean, of course, that the season could play out under at least two different sets of rules — which could be seen as undermining the integrity of intercounty competitions.

Alternatively, it could just be a common-sense rationalisation of the existing rules.

Whatever your view, there’s a clearer threat to the competitive integrity of the championship on the horizon.

Last Tuesday, it was also announced that the Cork hurlers would not play Clare at home in the Munster championship: the game is to be played in Semple Stadium as Páirc Uí Chaoimh will be unavailable due to a concert.

The Cork-Clare Munster SHC round 4 game has therefore moved to Thurles on the weekend of April 30/May 1 from Cork on May 15, the original date.

In the absence of any members of the executive at Tuesday’s press call who might have given more background to the switch, Kieran Kingston was asked about the matter. Understandably he was more focused on the game, though he did say: “Obviously we’d prefer to play in Páirc Uí Chaoimh, but as that’s not available this is a good alternative.”

The Cork boss also acknowledged the increased costs for Rebel supporters in going to Thurles: “Of course that is a consideration, no question about that, for supporters. It’s easy for me to sit here and say we’re happy to go to Thurles because we like playing in Thurles, and we know that the supporters like going to Thurles — but it does constitute three away fixtures in the round robin for Cork supporters.”

Surprisingly, the matter didn’t feature prominently at a scheduled Cork County Board meeting that evening, either — as luck would have it a reform of junior championship structures had been earmarked for discussion, and that dominated proceedings rather than the county’s inability to host a crucial championship game and sending its senior hurling team to play at a neutral venue instead.

Speaking to this newspaper last Tuesday (it was a busy 24 hours), Clare manager Brian Lohan was more focused on a lengthy injury list than relatively distant Munster championship fixtures, but he still made a reasonable observation about the switch: “I don’t know if it has much of an impact on us. I presume from a Cork perspective it’s a disadvantage to be moving out of Cork, but for us, it doesn’t really have a massive effect.”

Valid points. But what about the other counties in the Munster championship?

The move to Thurles means Cork have just one home game, a daunting rematch with All-Ireland champions Limerick, but it also means that Clare have an advantage over other counties in that they don’t have to play two away games.

It means the Banner County — through no fault or machinations of their own, it must be stressed — have an advantage over Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford, counties which face two away games in the round robin system. A couple of off the record conversations this week suggest that official silence from those counties shouldn’t be taken as indicating satisfaction with the situation: the natural inclination is to focus on Cork GAA being unable to use its own stadium, but there are more serious implications for the competitive integrity of the Munster SHC.

The reason for the switch in the first place, of course, are two Ed Sheeran concerts, revenue from which will help pay off the massive overrun in the costs of redeveloping Páirc Uí Chaoimh. This is why there will be twice as many Ed Sheeran concerts as Munster hurling championship games in the venue this year.

When considering the implications of those concerts it’s worth revisiting the Cork County Board’s convention of 2018, which took place shortly after this newspaper revealed the spiralling costs of the redevelopment.

“The stadium has not had and will not have any impact on inter-county teams, apart from providing them with an all-weather venue on which to train,” said then-chair of the Cork County Board Tracey Kennedy at the convention.

Those comments haven’t aged well given Cork’s inter-county team can’t use the stadium against Clare.

Few could have predicted, however, that the stadium would have such an impact on every county hurling team in Munster, not just Cork’s — not to mention the cohesion and balance of the Munster Championship itself.