Attempt to break impasse

If not exactly extending an olive branch, the Connacht Council of the GAA has offered the Galway County Board an alternative scenario which would at least allow Corofin to commence the defence of their All-Ireland club football title.

In a proposal of appeasement that leaves the "back door" open for a possible change in Galway's representatives in the AIB Connacht club football campaign, the provincial body has taken the unique step, for them, of suggesting that Corofin start out as the county's standard-bearers for the scheduled first round meeting with Ballina Stephenites in Ballina on Sunday.

The provincial body is standing by its demands that the game goes ahead, even though Corofin and Carraroe are due to meet in the Galway final, also on Sunday. But the Connacht Council has suggested that Corofin be allowed to represent Galway in the match against Ballina and, should they win but lose the subsequent Galway final to Carraroe, then the county title winners would take their place in the provincial campaign. It effectively means they are giving carte blanche to the possibility of two Galway teams competing in the one competition, but it is a proposal which the Connacht Council believes is fair to everyone.

"We've put the suggestion to the Galway board and all we can do is await their response. We think we are being very fair indeed," said John Prenty, secretary of the Connacht Council. "It is not something that has happened before in Connacht, but it has occurred in the other provinces so the precedent is set and it is in accordance with the Central Council rules."

The Connacht Council has stubbornly refused to put back the planned match between Ballina and the Galway representatives, claiming that they have already given the county a two-weeks extension while the Galway County Board is standing over the request for a postponement to allow them finish their own county championship. The provincial council's latest bid to break the impasse was to be discussed by the Galway board last night.

Meanwhile, the Connacht Council has allowed a deferment of the provincial club hurling final between Galway champions Athenry and Tooreen of Mayo which was due to take place in Aughamore on Saturday. The match has been rearranged for a future date due to the Railway Cup Interprovincial Hurling Championship semi-finals which take place on Sunday.

Newly-appointed Galway manager Mattie Murphy will also assume the reins of the Connacht team, but a team for Sunday's match against Ulster at Casement Park won't be chosen until tomorrow night. However, Murphy is critical of the timing of the interprovincial series and has warned that a new, improved date must be found if the competition is to survive.

Indeed, Murphy's views echo those of his Ulster counterpart Sean McGuinness, who has warned that the competition is "in danger of going to the wall," while Munster manager Ger Loughnane is also critical of its timing and, indeed, has decided not to attend next Sunday's meeting between Munster and Leinster at Nowlan Park, opting instead to attend the Clare county final which also takes place on Sunday.

McGuinness's team for the match with Connacht will be backboned by Antrim players. Eight Antrim men, four from Down and two from Derry - including duel player Geoffrey McGonigle - have been selected, although a vacancy has been left at left-half forward which will be filled later in the week.