Alternative black and red Cork top won't be worn in matches again

Sales of the training top had been very strong off the back of the hurlers and footballers lining out in it during their respective league wins over Waterford and Kildare the past two weekends.

LAST DANCE: The black and red Cork training top that the hurlers and footballers wore during their most recent league outings was a one-off, Cork GAA CEO Kevin O’Donovan told last night’s county board meeting. Pic Credit: James Lawlor, Inpho.

The black and red Cork training top that the hurlers and footballers wore during their most recent league outings was a one-off, Cork GAA CEO Kevin O’Donovan told the county board meeting on Tuesday.

O’Donovan explained that as part of a commercial agreement with Sports Direct and O’Neill’s, Cork had permission to wear an alternative shirt for one hurling and football game during the season.

Sales of the training top, he added, had been very strong off the back of the hurlers and footballers lining out in it during their respective league wins over Waterford and Kildare the past two weekends.

The hurlers were first to don the training top on Sunday week last, with reaction on social media that afternoon not carrying much love for the alternative jersey.

There was an acknowledgement from the top table at last night’s meeting that delegates should have been informed in advance of the two games that Cork were deviating from their traditional red strip.

“We understand that this particular jersey has caused upset to some of our members. This was perhaps due to the unique design as we had no such issues when releasing the respective black and blue commemorative jerseys in similar initiatives previously,” O’Donovan is quoted in the bulletin released by Cork GAA after the meeting.

“We may communicate the context of such jerseys more widely in advance but all commercial endeavours continue to pursue financial stability and the promotion of our games and teams.”