Cork City boss Tim Clancy: 'I feel sorry for our fans'

Cork City manager Tim Clancy, left, and Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley after the postponement of the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division match. Pic: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

Cork City manager Tim Clancy accepted the decision to postpone today’s fixture at Shamrock Rovers but has sympathy for the travelling fans already inside the ground.

Despite the Tallaght Stadium pitch passing inspections at both 11am and 4pm, 40 minutes before the 6pm, another survey resulted in it being deemed waterlogged.

This was the third game in four days scheduled for the venue, following the Hoops’ extra-time Conference League playoff game against Molde and Friday’s women’s international between Ireland and Turkey.

“I feel sorry for our fans - they travel up today and 35 minutes before kick-off it’s called off,” he said after the call made by referee Gavin Colfer.

“The fans travelling in a wasted journey is the frustrating part.

“Sometimes things can happen where nobody’s at fault. There’s been a few games off the last few days and the weather has been horrendously bad. It was playable in the pitch inspections at 11m and 4pm. Then there was a torrential downpour at 4.15pm.

“This pitch has been the best surface in the country for the last number of years. The ground staff did their best to get the game on.” 

Discussion was held around delaying kick-off in the hope of heavy rain subsiding but the City boss agreed with ditching that plan.

“They said they could have another hour working on the pitch but the tanks were already full of surface water from the downpour in the last few days.

“A couple of hours delay probably wouldn’t have made a difference.

“After it was called off, there was rain again for another 25 minutes. There was always going to be the threat.

“Even if it was called off at 4pm, our fans would have already set off and had to turn the car back halfway up the road. The fans travelling is the only disappointing part.”

Rovers boss Stephen Bradley denied the cancellation suited his team’s workload. He’d complained about the FAI’s failure to make them play last Sunday’s league opener against Bohemians before a record crowd at Lansdowne Road – just three days after their first leg in Norway.

“No,” he asserted.

“We had Rory Gaffney back from injury as well as Dylan Watts and Dan Cleary from suspension.

“It wasn’t too bad and then we had that monsoon for about a half hour. Both teams and the ref, everyone agreed it wasn’t playable when you look at the surface water on the pitch, I think it was the right call.” 

Next up for City – who began their season with a 2-2 draw against Galway United – is another home match against Bohemians on Friday. Rovers travel to take on champions Shelbourne on the same night.

The Friends of the Rebel Army Society (FORAS) has called on the League of Ireland to review its processes for assessing pitch conditions after the match was postponed with just 35 minutes notice.

In a statement, FORAS said: "Hundreds of travelling supporters incurred expense and spent hours travelling to Dublin, having been twice assured the fixture would go ahead.

"FORAS is calling on the League to explain how it issued a notice to supporters at 4pm ‘confirming’ the fixture would go ahead, only to call it off a little over an hour later.

"Met Éireann had forecast heavy downpours and potential thunderstorms for the Dublin region on Sunday. As such, earlier inspections at 11am and 4pm should have taken into account the impact this further forecast rain would have had on a playing surface that has hosted two games since Thursday night.

"The League needs to also explain why a request from Cork City to delay kick off to facilitate the game going ahead was apparently ignored.

"The League’s handling of this fixture has seen hundreds of travelling supporters left out of pocket, and having wasted a day going to Dublin.

"This treatment of loyal supporters is not good enough, is a poor reflection on the League’s ability to manage the competition, and demands a review to avoid a repeat of a similar situation."

A statement from the LOI reads: "It was with great regret that we were forced into the postponement of this evening’s SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division fixture between Shamrock Rovers and Cork City at Tallaght Stadium.

"The pitch was passed playable in the first pitch inspection at 11:15 this morning and with more rain forecast amid changeable weather conditions, it was agreed with both Clubs that a second inspection would take place at 16:00.

"The pitch was deemed playable at this juncture and unfortunately a torrential downpour occurred after the second pitch inspection which made the pitch unplayable.

"We would like to thank the match officials and ground staff in trying to get the game to go ahead and we apologise to supporters for the disappointment caused after they made great efforts in travelling to today’s game to support their clubs."