THE OFFALY SFC has been rocked by controversy after an appeal was submitted by the Shamrocks club over the result of their quarter-final defeat to last year’s county finalists Ferbane.

The appeal is in relation to an incorrectly awarded two-pointer in the fifth minute of their 3-15 to 2-17 loss on Sunday. The Shamrocks club believe that Ferbane’s Adam Egan was inside the arc when he took the shot, and say that their season ending this way is “a very sour note”.

Incidents of wrongly awarded two-pointers have occurred in other club competitions around the country this season. 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.

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 if their appeal is successful. 

A spokesperson for Shamrocks has told The 42 that the club submitted the appeal to the Offaly county board yesterday and will await to hear if Ferbane wish to object before a hearing can take place.

“As a committee, we’re taking our guidance from the players. We sat down with them the other night. We listened to their concerns and we backed them.

“The request came from them. We asked them to go back and check with the rest of the group. They came back to us and asked us to proceed. It was unanimous on the players to take this approach. We’re backing them.

“The schedule shouldn’t come into it. What’s right is right. We would work with Ferbane to find a suitable date for the replay. We feel we should replay the game.”

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. Offaly Live reports that their decision was caused by “not being consulted over the appeal”.

However, the Shamrocks spokesperson has told The 42 that their decision was indicated to the club “prior to the club lodging the appeal”.

John Monaghan said he did not wish to make “any further comments” when contacted by The 42.

When asked if Shamrocks would be prepared to take their case to Leinster Council if their appeal is rejected by the Offaly county board, the spokesperson replied:

“We’d have to regroup. As a committee, we’re taking our guidance from the players.

“They’re very disappointed. A few things have gone against them in the past in terms of decisions and they just felt, [the] same old again.

“But they’re great guys. I have no doubt that if we got the replay, they’d put their best foot forward again.”