UCD COULD be parachuted into the Setanta Sports Cup after Bohemians manager Pat Fenlon intimated yesterday the holders may not be able to field a team.
The cross-border competition starts on Monday week, February 14th, though Bohemians are not due to host Portadown in their opening defence of the trophy until a week later.
But, with just four players signed at the moment, Fenlon said he feels it would be wrong to sign any more until outstanding contract issues are resolved, including wages owed to non-football staff.
A winding up order petitioned by two players was withdrawn last Friday after their contracts were paid up and settlements were reached with six of the seven other contracted players.
Striker Paddy Madden’s transfer to Carlisle United yesterday should help matters at Dalymount Park, though doubt over Bohemians’ involvement was scarcely the news the competition organisers wanted aired at its launch in Abbotstown yesterday.
“To be honest with you, I don’t think we are going to be able to play the first game. We don’t have a team,” said Fenlon. “We’ve three or four players signed at the moment and that’s it.
“And I don’t know what the situation is in relation to signing other players. I don’t think we can fulfil that fixture.
“We can’t train. We trained for two weeks and I then had to cancel it last week because all the staff are gone. You can’t train without a physio or anybody else. That’s where we stand at the moment.”
“I’m very close to that,” added Fenlon when asked was he at the end of his tether and would he, indeed, quit. “I want to make sure all the players are sorted out and that’s resolved. There are people at the club due wages outside of the playing side.
“It would be very difficult for me to go and sign players while that situation remains. It’s not fair on anybody to do that. When all that is sorted, I’ll make a decision on what I want to do then.”
Bohemians secretary Denis Maher confirmed the club hadn’t been in a position to sign players until the contract/severance issues are resolved.
“You can sign players up to 24 hours before the game. Now we must work to get a squad of players together,” said Maher.
Milo Corcoran, chairman of the Setanta Sports Cup organising committee, clearly taken aback by the suggestion the holders may have to pull out, said he’d be anxious to speak to Bohemians.
“There will have to be a lot of honesty and trust between the committee and Bohemians. We would expect they’ll have to give us an indication this week. We’ll have to put UCD on notice.
“There is a provision within the rules that if a club can’t take part, they have to be replaced by another club. That club would be UCD, they’re next in the league.”
SETANTA SPORTS CUP
February 14th – First Round, first leg: Linfield v Dundalk; Sporting Fingal v Lisburn Distillery. February 21st – First Round, first leg: Bohemians v Portadown; Cliftonville v St Patrick’s Athletic. February 28th – First Round, second leg: Dundalk v Linfield; Lisburn Distillery v Sporting Fingal. March 1st – First Round, second leg: Portadown v Bohemians; St Patrick’s Athletic v Cliftonville. (Glentoran, Crusaders, Sligo Rovers and Shamrock Rovers enter competition at quarter-final stage).
