LIMERICK BOSS JOHN Kiely feels Gearóid Hegarty is being unfairly targeted by referees after the Limerick forward was sent off during their clash with Clare.
Hegarty was shown two yellow cards by referee Colm Lyons in Cusack Park, the second for an incident with Clare’s Aaron Fitzgerald. Kiely felt there was “no contact” and expects the card to be rescinded.
“We’ve watched it back there on the tape and it’s quite clear that there was no contact. The player basically just grabbed his stomach and jumped straight down on the ground, there was no contact,” Kiely said, speaking to reporters after the game.
Take aways from John Kiely as @LimerickCLG draw with @GaaClare Game: "It was a cracking game of hurling" Red card: "It is quiet clear there is no contact, the player basically grabs his stomach and throws himself on the ground" https://t.co/a7GolvpIlh
— Sporting LK (@SportingLK) May 15, 2022
“It’s very disappointing, it was much ado about nothing. It’s a card we’ll expect to be rescinded completely. It is important that decisions are rectified if there is a mistake made. I think it is clear in this instance that there was a mistake made.
“There’s a narrative there at the moment that Gearóid is playing on the edge or doing x, y, or z, and it’s feeding into people’s decision-making. It needs to stop, because it’s going to have a big impact and it’s just disappointing, really disappointing, to see a player do that.
“It was a great game. A lot of physicality to the game. It was a tremendous contest. It is just really disappointing. There was nothing there. We’ve seen the video footage. It is there for everyone to see. At the end of the day, it shouldn’t take from the overall game.”
The Limerick manager confirmed they will challenge the yellow card because “it is only right and fair”.
The result sets up a rematch in three weeks’ time for the Munster final.
