The GAA proved that they do farce better than Charlie Chaplin yesterday at the Christy Ring Cup final. At the end of the 70 minutes, the scoreboard at Croke Park recorded a one-point victory for Meath over Antrim, and the referee acted in accordance with that result:
MEATH ARE CHAMPIONS!! Christy Ring Cup Hurling Final (FT): @AontroimGAA 1-20 @MeathGAA 2-18 (LIVE on @TG4TV)
— The GAA (@officialgaa) June 4, 2016
The result recorded by the journalists in the press box was different, however, with many present having the game as a draw.
I'm convinced there has been a major mistake in Croke Park today over final score of Antrim v Meath. It should have ended a draw.
— Brendan Crossan (@CrossanBrendan) June 4, 2016
Watched Christy Ring final back on fast forward there. Definitely finished Antrim 1-20 Meath 2-17 @CrossanBrendan
— Cahair O'Kane (@CahairOKane1) June 4, 2016
On Radio One yesterday, Des Cahill confirmed that RTE had reviewed the footage of the game, confirming that the game should have ended in a draw. Antrim confirmed to Balls.ie that they are reviewing the video evidence themselves, and will discuss the matter at a scheduled executive meeting tomorrow evening.
In the last few moments, Darren Frehill of RTE Sport confirmed that there has been an acceptance that referee John O'Brien made an error in recording the score, and the Central Competitions Control Committee would meet on Tuesday (Monday is off-limits owing to the bBank Holiday, apparently) to consider their options:
RTE understands mistake was made by ref recording score in Christy Ring final. CCCC will meet Tuesday to consider. More @sundaysport shortly
— Darren Frehill (@Darrenfrehill) June 5, 2016
Exactly what will happen is unclear. John Fogarty of the Irish Examiner tweeted that more than one of the officials had the score wrong:
Re Christy Ring Cup final, it is understood at least one other match official had the game finishing as a draw. #GAA
— John Fogarty (@JohnFogartyIrl) June 5, 2016
It is also, as Fogarty elucidated, a failure on the part of the Hawkeye system in operation at Croke Park, which should have clocked the correct scoreline.
In this situation, the referee's report is not absolutely final, as Cahir O'Kane of the Irish News tweeted the rules governing such a situation:
Antrim's big problem if they do lodge a completely viable protest is the famed GAA rulebook pic.twitter.com/DAREgTABH9
— Cahair O'Kane (@CahairOKane1) June 4, 2016
In 1995, a Leinster Championship game between Laois and Carlow ended in similarly controversial circumstances. 90 seconds from the end, Laois were awarded a point despite many of those present believing Michael Turley's effort had gone wide. The noble exception to this was the umpire, who waved a white flag.
The Carlow management went into meltdown, with manager Bobby Miller running onto the pitch to argue with the umpire. Owing to the controversial ending, Laois themselves offered a replay to Carlow, which the O'Moore county won 1-16 to 0-16.
The Meath county board responded to our request by saying that "we are very proud of our hurling team who put up an amazing performance to win the Christy Ring Cup as of now that's all we have to say ".
It remains to be seen how this whole thing plays out. While it is easy to have sympathy for the referee - who has a multitude of things to do during the game - it seems harsh on Antrim to force them to wait up to 72 hours for full clarity on the issue.
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