Clare GAA unsuccessful in challenge to amend Wexford motion passed at Congress

UNSUCCESSFUL CHALLENGE: Clare GAA unsuccessful in challenge to amend Wexford motion passed at Congress. Pic:Stephen Marken/Sportsfile

Clare GAA have been unsuccessful in challenging the GAA’s decision to amend a Wexford motion passed at Congress which eased the eligibility requirements for U20 and senior inter-county players.

Clare brought their case to the Disputes Resolution Authority (DRA) on Tuesday night that Central Council went beyond interpreting Wexford’s proposal, but the Clare challenge failed on the grounds that their appeal was not lodged within seven days of the Central Council decision, the Irish Examiner understands.

The motion, as passed at Congress in February, would have allowed a player to line out for both his senior and U20 teams in the seven-day period from Friday to the following Thursday night.

In essence, a player could have lined out for the U20s on a Wednesday or Thursday before being available to the seniors the following weekend. On the other hand, he would not have been able to do it in reverse, that is play senior at the weekend before the midweek U20 game.

Central Council last month voted to change the rule, transforming it into a rolling seven-day window whereby a player could only play for one team in that period.

This amendment has seen regular Clare U20 full-back Adam Hogan left out of the Clare U20 panel for this evening’s Munster U20 championship game at home to Cork (Cusack Park, 6.15pm).

Hogan is also a member of Brian Lohan's senior squad and involvement in the U20 game would have made him ineligible for Sunday's Munter SHC game against Tipperary.

CLARE (v Cork): A Shanahan (Tulla); O Clune (Feakle), J Conneally (Clooney-Quin), I McNamara (Killanena); J Collins (Éire Óg Ennis), D Lohan (Wolfe Tones Na Sionna), O Cahill (Éire Óg Ennis); S Rynne (Inagh-Kilnamona), J O’Neill (Clooney-Quin); O O’Donnell (Crusheen), P Crotty (Scariff), K Smyth (Killanena); D Kennedy (Sixmilebridge), S Dunford (Tubber), G Sheedy (Ogonnolloe).