Kilkenny senior hurling manager Derek Lyng says he was left disappointed for his players after the Cats’ Walsh Cup clash with Westmeath failed to go ahead on Sunday.
The sides were due to meet in the Dioralyte Walsh Cup at St Loman’s, Mullingar, but Kilkenny refused to play when the grass pitch was deemed unavailable and the fixture was moved to the venue’s 3G surface. Kilkenny management decided the synthetic pitch was not suitable for an inter-county hurling match, citing player welfare concerns.
Speaking afterwards, Lyng said the situation was far from ideal, particularly given the number of players he was hoping to assess during the early stages of the season.
“It’s not ideal at all. We were really looking forward to the game,” Lyng said. “We have a number of players in at the minute and, as we go through the next few weeks, we need to get a look at them. That opportunity was taken away from them.”
Lyng stressed that player safety was the overriding factor in the decision not to proceed.
“While today is unfortunate, player safety is number one. I have a medical team on board and I’m taking their views on board,” he said. “We did everything possible to get the game played, but that 3G pitch was not fit for purpose for an inter-county match.”
The Kilkenny manager also acknowledged the effort being put in by his panel during the opening weeks of the campaign.
“The players have put in a huge effort and they will get opportunities. That will play out over the next few weeks and months. Some things are simply out of our control, but I’m really disappointed the game didn’t go ahead.”
Westmeath GAA, released a statement stating that Kilkenny had refused to fulfil the fixture. The match was originally scheduled to take place at Breedon Kevin Molloy Park, but was relocated to the 3G pitch at St Loman’s due to the inclement weather.
According to Westmeath, the Kilkenny management “decided not to fulfil the fixture, declining to warm up or commence the match and withdrawing from play”.
A coin toss subsequently took place, with Westmeath being deemed winners of the tie.
You can hear from Derek Lyng, Pat Bennet and Arian Ronan right now on the KCLR Hurling Podcast, available from wherever you get your podcasts.
