'Player welfare goes out the window': Barrs chair Hayes on quick turnaround between finals

Jerry Riordan, Operations Manager of Co Op Superstores and Noel O'Callaghan, vice chairman of the Cork county board with Adam Lynch of the Glen Rovers and Ben Cunningham who contest the Cork Premier SHC final at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh this Sunday. Pic: Eddie O'Hare

Contesting both premier senior county finals is of course how St Finbarr’s wanted to mark their 150th anniversary, but the quest for glory is made that bit more difficult by circumstances outside of their control.

This Sunday, the Togher side meet Glen Rovers in the Co-op SuperStores Premier SHC final at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, with the football decider against Nemo Rangers set for seven days later.

In recent times, the custom in Cork has been that a club reaching two finals is allowed a weekend off in between, the AIB Munster Club Championships schedule – and the Páirc’s own calendar – have mitigated against this.

Last Saturday night, the Barr’s beat Clonakilty in the football semi, just six days after beating Kanturk in the hurling last four – games were not allowed at the stadium on Sunday due to Uefa regulations baked into the hosting of the Republic of Ireland women’s national team’s clash with Kazakhstan last night.

In addition, the next two Saturdays see other codes take place at the venue – Munster’s Investec Champions Cup clash with Racing 92 this weekend and then camogie-shinty and hurling-shinty internationals between Ireland and Scotland seven days later.

While county finals in grades where the winners do not advance to Munster have been pushed back, there is no wriggle room for the top-tier deciders – the Cork hurling champions face Clare’s Inagh-Kilnamona on November 1, with the football winners taking on Tipperary opposition a week later.

It means that the Barrs are not afforded the extra week of preparation time that was present when they were going for the double in 2022.

They don’t like it, but they have to go along with it – however, Barr’s football chairperson Paddy Hayes feels that it is asking a lot of those lining out for both sides.

“What we’re disappointed about is that player welfare goes out the window,” he said.

“We have players on their last legs – and it’s not just us, Kanturk were the same and St Nick’s had football last weekend and the Glen are in the hurling final.

“I just think, from the dual players’ point of view, it’s really, really tough. It’s rest, work, train and that’s it.” Such is the compacted nature of the fixtures roster that requesting a postponement of the football was not an option.

“After the Carbery game [quarter-final], we sent an email to the county board looking for seven days and we were told that the matches were fixed for Saturday night, so we had a six-day turnaround,” Hayes said.

“We knew from early on when the master fixture list came out, the Munster clubs are fixed so there's no way around it. If the hurling final is a draw this Sunday, the replay is Wednesday week.

“We had the luxury of taking off a couple of dual players against Carbery when we were eight or nine points ahead but it’s just so tough on them.”