OFFALY CLUB SHAMROCKS have been unsuccessful in their appeal over the result of last Sunday’s county senior football quarter-final against Ferbane.

Shamrocks lost the game 3-15 to 2-17 but appealed the result on the basis of what they deemed to be an incorrectly awarded two-pointer in the fifth minute, when they believed Adam Egan’s shot had been taken inside the arc.

Shamrocks chairman Anthony Hanniffy confirmed to The 42 tonight that their appeal had been unsuccessful and that they will meet with the players to “decide our next steps.”

‘We were given a very fair hearing with a lot of empathy for our position particularly for our players. Unfortunately the committee assessed that no rule was broken with the error. We are naturally disappointed with the ruling. We will regroup and discuss with our players and then decide on our next steps.”

The Shamrocks club previously told The 42 that their season ending this way is “a very sour note”. Last year’s county finalists Ferbane are due to face Edenderry in the semi-final next Sunday, 12 October, but Shamrocks are confident that a replay would not cause a disruption to the competition.

The Shamrocks management team led by joint-managers John Monaghan and Brian Kinnarney has also stepped down in the wake of the defeat to Ferbane.

Similar controversies have emerged this year in other club competitions over disputed two-point scores.

In Fermanagh, a replay was ordered for the Fermanagh Senior Football League Division 1 final between Derrygonnelly Harps and Erne Gaels Belleek after footage showed that Derrygonnelly’s final two scores, both two-pointers, were kicked from inside the 40-metre arc.

Similarly in Mayo, Hollymount Carramore lodged an objection over their intermediate championship exit against Kilmaine over a disputed two-pointer in a game that ended in a draw.