Crossmaglen face brief but anxious wait

The Ulster Council is set to bring forward the next meeting of its Competitions Control Committee to this week in order to consider the referee's report from Sunday's provincial club quarter-final between All-Ireland champions Crossmaglen and Clontibret.

The match ended in controversy with angry Clontibret players surrounding referee Martin Sludden after he blew the final whistle after the Monaghan champions had tried to take a short '45'. A brawl briefly flared between players from both sides before the referee was escorted from the field by gardaí.

"There is no meeting scheduled for this week," according to Ulster secretary Danny Murphy. "But with Crossmaglen due to play on Sunday the 18th, the matter will have to be expedited. The committee will consider the referee's report and launch an investigation if they deem that necessary."

Crossmaglen had two players, John Donaldson and Cathal Short, red carded and will need to know details of the anticipated suspensions.

On the injury front there is mixed news for the champions. Kernan brothers Aaron and Stephen are both carrying injuries. The former received a knock on his hip in the first half and had to receive a half-time pain-killing injection that apparently didn't kick in for the second half, limiting his effectiveness, but it's not expected to prevent him playing in the semi-final against the winners of the Mayobridge-Dromore replay.

On the other hand, Stephen, who ruptured shoulder ligaments in a challenge match recently and missed Sunday's win over Clontibret, is regarded as doubtful for the semi-final.

Down GAA's Management Committee have announced that Jim McKernan has been appointed as the county's new senior hurling manager, "subject to ratification by the Down county committee".

The Patrick Sarsfields clubman was chosen to succeed Gerald Coulter, who stepped down earlier this year, at a meeting of the management committee last week. McKernan is a former manager of the Antrim seniors, minors, under-21 and intermediate hurlers.

The Vodafone Player of the Year awards for camogie and women's football were yesterday presented to Wexford's Kate Kelly and Cork's Briege Corkery. Both were All-Ireland winners this year - Kelly in Wexford's first camogie title in 32 years, a wait ended by the final defeat of a Cork side which included Corkery, who was also a member of the county's three-in-a-row football team. Corkery is a former winner of The Irish Times Sportswoman of the Year award.

Meanwhile, last-minute discussions yesterday failed to save the Leinster club preliminary round clash between Dublin representatives St Vincent's and the Wicklow champions.

The already twice postponed fixture, due to be played tonight, had been all but dead as soon as Rathnew and Baltinglass drew Sunday's county final, but provincial CEO Michael Delaney said attempts were made to facilitate the eventual winners.

"We talked to all the parties concerned," Delaney said, "in case Wicklow might decide to stage the replay this week under lights rather than next weekend, but the clubs involved decided to go ahead and forfeit the county's place in the Leinster championship".

St Vincent's have been awarded a walkover and will face Meath side Seneschalstown next Sunday as part of the province's quarter-finals line-up.

The root of the problem is the protracted dispute between last year's champions St Patrick's and Shilleleagh, which went to the DRA and held up the county's schedules for weeks. But even since then there has been a series of unwelcome draws, culminating in Sunday's stalemate.

Anticipating the problem last week, Leinster approached the Wicklow clubs to see if they would be willing to play extra-time at the end of last weekend's final if it ended in a draw.

Both declined.