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Munster Council admit 'inadequate stewarding' was a cause of pitch invasion before minor final

Last night’s game between Limerick and Waterford was disrupted by supporters crossing the pitch beforehand.

Pic: INPHO/Lorraine O’Sullivan

THE MUNSTER COUNCIL have accepted ‘inadequate stewarding’ contributed to the chaotic crowd scenes before last night’s provincial minor hurling final replay in Thurles.

Limerick claimed the silverware with a 1-20 to 4-8 victory over Waterford but the game was marred by the scenes before the throw-in which saw supporters walk across the pitch from the New Stand at Semple Stadium to the Kinane Stand.

In an official statement released today, the Munster Council insist that the 10,000 capacity New Stand was capable of accommodating the crowd on the night as the attendance, per the stadium stilecounter system, was 6,532.

But the provincial body have apologised to the competing teams for having their pre-match preparations compromised by the invading fans and the subsequent delay to the throw-in.

The statement in full reads:

Munster GAA Statement related to Munster Minor Hurling Final Replay

The Munster Council expected and planned for an attendance of between 5,000 to 6,000 at last night’s Munster Minor Hurling Final replay.

The attendance on the night was 6,532, as confirmed by the Stadium stile counter system. The Council is satisfied that this is accurate of the numbers in attendance.

As with all fixtures of this nature, the only side of the ground that was opened was the new stand. This stand has a capacity of 10,000, which was more than adequate to cater for the numbers that attended.

As a large number of people came to the ground with 15 minutes to go to throw in, we took the decision to postpone the throw in for 10 minutes in order to allow everyone safe entry to the ground.

We are satisfied that this was the correct decision and are satisfied that queues had dissipated at 7.35 pm. This was actively monitored by Council officials.

Regarding the fans who walked across the pitch from the New Stand to the Kinane Stand, we regret any inconvenience caused to the participating teams in their preparations for the game and we will be reviewing the matter with Semple Stadium.

We regret that a minority of fans took the decision to leave the New Stand, which had ample room to accommodate all patrons.

The council acknowledges that there was inadequate stewarding to the front of the stand to cope adequately with this patron behaviour and it is a matter that we will review.

YouTube: Tomás Ó Cadhla

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    Mute Hardly Normal
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    Mar 5th 2015, 9:10 PM

    I’d say Van Gall is a very difficult man to work with.. He comes across so arrogant he even makes alex ferguson look humble..

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    Mute annus mirabilis 89
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    Mar 5th 2015, 9:49 PM

    I’m sure Giggs was happy with the win but just not in the manner in which it came

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    Mute Graham Kavanagh
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    Mar 5th 2015, 10:17 PM

    Never mind the relationship, who cares, where the fck do these generic incompetent reporters come from? You could get an app on a phone that would ask smarter questions….

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    Mute Luke D
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    Mar 5th 2015, 9:52 PM

    I’m sure he’s delighted to have such an ambitious, ruthless and absolutely incredibly popular assistant manager.

    Old Scholes didn’t exactly give him the vote of confidence the other day and I’m sure he’s still close with Giggs, I wonder did he know Paul was going to stick the boot in.

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    Mute Nom
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    Mar 5th 2015, 9:19 PM

    He seriously needs to chill out!

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    Mute James O Connell
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    Mar 5th 2015, 11:18 PM

    I always thought van gaal thought giggsy was a bit of a simp

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    Mute Daithi Mcmahon
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    Mar 6th 2015, 2:14 AM

    He’s an awkward man!

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    Mute Padraig Looby
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    Mar 6th 2015, 3:28 PM

    Not sure about LVG. All arrogance and yet to back it up. Serious money spent and the team is a shambles. They create next to nothing. When they do score it’s more an accident than anything else. Terrible defence. Jones, Smalling & Fabio (is that his name?) are awful – should be playing with Derby or Burnley. Rojo way too rash. People go on about Falcao not scoring???? United create nothing for him. Give him some service and I’m certain he’ll put them away – he is proven quality. Di Maria? Don’t know what’s happened to him. Blind is as average as the day is long. He’s the dutch Glenn Whelan, every pass is sideways or backwards. LVG brings on Fellaini to dig him out of a hole every 2nd game? Unreal. I wonder does the chap realise how lucky he is to play for United – he’s absolutely rubbish. And I’m not jumping on the band wagon, I thought that from day one. Ever see him try to control the ball with his fee? He’s not able to. I suppose the only good thing is that they are 4th, but I fancy Liverpool to finish 4th. United with a lot of tough fixtures in the last 12 odd games. (Liverpool, Spurs, City, Chelsea, Everton)

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    Mute John Kilkenny
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    Mar 6th 2015, 6:44 PM

    Dutch Glen Whelan I love it

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    Mute Fran Watkins
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    Mar 5th 2015, 11:18 PM

    Ah the paper looks for angle

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    Mute Tony Hartigan
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    Mar 6th 2015, 11:04 PM

    Man U are pure shite this season.

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