All-Ireland SFC semi: Tyrone could pull out over covid concerns
By Francis Mooney
The Tyrone county board revealed this evening (Mon) that it may be forced to withdraw from the All-Ireland series due to concerns over player welfare.
The semi-final against Kerry has been put back for a week due to a number of Covid-19 cases within the Red Hand squad.
But Red Hand officials have warned that not enough time has been allowed for recovery and return to play.
County chairman Michael Kerr revealed that a request for a two-week postponement until the weekend of August 28/29 was turned down by Croke Park officials.
The clash with the Munster champions was originally scheduled for this Sunday, but has now been re-fixed for Saturday August 21.
“This is about player welfare, and it’s clear that our players will not be ready to engage in a high intensity Championship game so soon after being directly affected by this virus,” said Kerr.
And he warned that Tyrone may not be in a position to field a team for the eagerly-awaited clash with the Kingdom.
Kerr said a difficult decision will have to be taken, which could lead to a withdrawal from the All-Ireland series, and a bye to the Sam Maguire Cup final for Kerry.
“The welfare of the players is paramount. The management will not be making a decision until this weekend on whether we will be capable of fulfilling the fixture.”
Carrickmore clubman Kerr questioned Croke Park’s position on limiting the postponement to one week.
“They have decided that the final should be pushed no further back than Saturday 4th of September, but if something similar was to happen in the meantime to any of the two panels competing in the final, that date would disappear into the twilight as well.
He added: “While we appreciate the postponement, which now allows us to be able to field a team, our request to have the match put back until the following weekend would have allowed us to be able to field a team that would be properly prepared and be in a position to do itself justice in an All-Ireland semi-final.
“We are grateful to have the opportunity to be able to field, but by the same token, disappointed that Croke Park have not given us sufficient time to prepare a proper challenge for Kerry.”
The Tyrone chairman added: “We are also conscious of the fact that the situation is not an ideal one for Kerry, and the uncertainty creates difficulties for their preparations for this important game.”