SFC quarter-final postponed amidst farcical scenes

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The Ramor United v Mullahoran SFC quarter-final, scheduled for Kingspan Breffni at 4pm today, was called off after lengthy deliberations due to the pitch being deemed unsafe for players following heavy rain.

In highly unusual scenes, the match was delayed shortly before the scheduled throw-in, then given the green light to proceed at 5pm after a pitch inspection, then eventually called off eight minutes after it was announced at the grounds that it would "definitely" go ahead.

The match was originally pushed back at approximately 3.30pm to facilitate a pitch inspection. Referee Noel Mooney inspected the pitch at 4.15pm and it was deemed playable, with throw-in put back until 5pm.

Events entered the realm of farce as the rain began to fall again and mentors for each side picked up their cones and warm-up equipment. However, at 4.43pm, an announcement at the ground confirmed that the match was “definitely” going ahead.

Within a minute of this announcement, though, the rain turned into a deluge. The referee could be seen again entering the field; at 4.51pm, it was announced that the match was called off as Mooney had deemed conditions unsafe for players.

“The game is definitely off and will be re-scheduled for Tuesday night, venue and time to be revealed later on,” stated the announcer at the stadium at 4.56pm, by which stage a lot of supporters were already gone.

Members of both camps expressed their dissatisfaction afterwards and some asked the question as to how the pitch could cut up so badly after heavy but not unseasonal rainfall.

The county U14 and U16 championship finals have been played at venues outside of Kingspan Breffni in the last fortnight in order to protect the pitch. However, four matches – the Senior Championship quarter-final between Arva and Crosserlough, two All-Ireland Masters football finals and the Gowna v Cavan Gaels quarter-final – were hosted on the pitch in 23 hours from Friday night on.

By last night (Saturday), it was clear that this had taken a heavy toll, with the areas in front of both goals badly cut up and the rain this morning made it worse.

Exacerbating the situation is the fact that the Kingscourt v Ballyhaise quarter-final, originally due to be played this afternoon also, was postponed until Wednesday due to a bereavement.

With further rain forecast in the coming days, the county board now have a scheduling dilemma, although the semi-finals are not due to be played until the last weekend of the month.

The board previously came in for strong criticism for their decision not to postpone the 2024 county final, which was played during Storm Ashley. On that occasion, most scheduled finals around the country were called off.