CONCERNS AROUND THE lack of alignment between the fixtures on the last day of Division 4 are misplaced, according to Tipperary selector Paddy Christie.
It was confirmed this week that the Allianz Division 4 football league fixture between Tipperary and London will take place on Saturday evening.
Elsewhere in the division, Wexford and Carlow has been confirmed for Saturday at 1pm while Cavan’s game with Waterford is at 6pm. Sligo and Leitrim play on Sunday in Markievicz Park at 1pm. That tie could potentially be a dead rubber depending on Saturday’s results.
“That fixture has been there a long time. It was in my diary, I remember looking at it,” said Christie. The Dubliner is also Tipperary U20 manager and was speaking at the launch of the 2022 EirGrid GAA football U20 All-Ireland Championship.
“The fixture was there a good while ago. It was one of those things, as it crept up you thought, ‘this could affect things.’
“For me, the fact we play London and if we win that game we are through, that is the end of it. I don’t think it is that big a deal. I certainly don’t think there was anything untoward.
“I heard people talking about it saying it was disrespectful and made a farce of things, I don’t know. The GAA are between a rock and a hard place. They are trying to get fixtures set up for the year and something like that happens and it is a little bit awkward.
“Ultimately, Tipperary need to go out and beat London.”
Flight scheduling has always been a factor in London’s fixtures. A win in Thurles will secure an immediate return to Division 3 for David Power’s outfit.
“I know it means Sligo play Leitrim on Sunday in a game that doesn’t mean anything but if there wasn’t a game would they not play a challenge game anyway? I know it is not ideal,” Christie said.
“If it was the other way around and we were playing in a game with potentially no significance, what way would we look at it? We would look at it as preparation for the championship in a couple of weeks. Sligo and Leitrim are local rivals, there will be a bit of an edge there anyway.
“For me, I don’t see the big deal. Obviously, it is not perfect but I don’t think anyone did it on purpose. It certainly wasn’t done to be disrespectful.”
