KERRY CHAMPIONS, DR Crokes have blasted speculation that they want their supporters kept separate when they meet Armagh opposition as ‘totally untrue’.
Crokes will face Crossmaglen Rangers in the All Ireland Senior Club Championsip semi-final next month.
O’Moore Park in Portlaoise is scheduled to be the match venue, the same ground which played host to violent scenes between Dromid Pearses and Derrytresk last Sunday.
This morning’s Irish Examiner had carried quotes from Crokes chairman, Vincent Casey, which appeared to call for partition.
However, in a statement released this afternoon, the Killarney club have rejected the story. Instead they insist that a high demand for tickets caused a request for the block of seats where their juvenile members and family could be seated together.
To clarify the situation the statement added:
“We’ve brought juvenile members to all our games this year and they have been together for the games. However we believe that there will be a large attendance at the game in Portlaoise and hence our reason for looking for an area where these can be accommodated together. All other interpretation of the clubs requests are a misinterpretation of the facts and the Club is in no way calling for segregation of supporters.”
In light of the high-profile fall out from last weekend Dr Crokes confirmed that they have also requested, “that there be adequate stewarding on the day, inparticular on the area in front of where the subs are seated”.
Both senior club semi-finals will be played on 18 February, the winners of this encounter will face either Westmeath’s Garrycastle or St Brigids of Roscommon in the final.