Yesterday should have been a banner day for Down hurling.
The Mourne men won their first game in Division 2A of the Allianz Hurling League, beating Carlow 2-10 to 1-12 in Ballycran. The match ended in hugely dramatic circumstances, with both teams trading goals in the game's final minutes. The two points secured yesterday will be hugely valuable for Down as they seek to secure their status in Division 2A for another year, and press for promotion.
The victory means Down remain unbeaten at Ballycran in the four years that Newry man Ronan Sheehan has been their manager.
After the match however, Sheehan alleged that his players had been subject to sectarian abuse during the match in a tweet.
He called the abuse 'extremely disappointing' and added there is 'no place in the GAA for that'.
The Carlow County Board provided the following statement to RTÉ about this matter.
"Carlow GAA are committed to upholding the principles of Anti-Sectarianism and Anti-Racism.
"All related reports/allegations are investigated and action taken as appropriate."
Sheehan also explained to RTÉ why he came forward with the allegations.
“It may only be loose words for the person saying them but it does impact on players given who they are and what some of their families endured to play our national games.
“If we had lost today I would have said nothing as people would say it was only sour grapes, but when we won I thought it was important to highlight [it] as it’s an insult to Gaels up here.”
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