GAA defend fixtures move

The GAA have distanced themselves from suggestions that they bowed to church pressure in re-scheduling from Saturday to Sunday the final series of matches in the NFL Division One A, due to be played on the Easter weekend.

In a statement, responding to a press release from the Donegal County Board, it was said that ". . . the GAA would like to clarify the reasons for the playing of the final round of games on the same day and at the same times.

"There were logical and sound reasons for scheduling the games simultaneously in relation to the status of teams and the importance of their league finishing positions for the coming championship season."

The earlier release from Donegal had disputed a report in last Tuesday's Irish Times, which stated that the final series of matches in the NFL Division One A had been switched from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon in order to preserve conformity, as the floodlights in MacCumhaill Park, Ballybofey, would not be ready in time.

But Donegal spokesperson Séamus O'Donnell pointed out that "erection of the floodlighting was on schedule and would have been available on the Saturday night had the fixture been to allowed stand," before adding: "It is the rumoured the reason the fixtures were changed was because the Church authorities had requested it."

Asked why it would make any difference to play all four Division One A matches on Sunday rather than on Saturday evening, a GAA spokesperson said that it had been considered preferable to run all the matches on the same day.