The All-Ireland Under-20 hurling final between Cork and Galway, scheduled for this Saturday, is likely to be re-fixed for the following weekend. This is on foot of the Cork GAA statement issued on Sunday evening that due to a Covid outbreak and consequent determinations of close contacts by the Health Service Executive, the county would not be able to fulfil the original fixture.
“A member of the Cork under-20 Hurling group has tested positive for Covid-19,” ran the statement. “As a result, all players and management have been deemed as close contacts by the HSE. Therefore, Cork will be unable to fulfil Saturday’s All-Ireland under-20 final fixture at this time.”
The GAA’s rules on Covid outbreaks do not allow ordinary championship matches to be deferred because of cases within playing panels - Dublin seniors had to play the recent Leinster final against Kilkenny despite losing four players to a similar designation.
It was however enshrined in regulations last winter that neither All-Ireland finals nor semi-finals would be defaulted in those circumstances and that such matches would be rearranged.
A GAA spokesperson said on Monday that the Central Competitions Control Committee would re-schedule the final at its next meeting. The likelihood is that it will be for the following week to allow the situation to be addressed by Cork but that fixture details remain to be confirmed.
