DOWN boss Jim McCorry believes Derry forward Enda Lynn will be “a bit embarrassed” for his reaction that led to Mourne defender Conaill McGovern's sending-off during Sunday’s Ulster Championship clash at Celtic Park.
McCorry confirmed that Down will appeal McGovern’s 37th minute red card, issued by referee Eddie Kinsella at the behest of his umpire.
Television pictures show McGovern pushing Lynn in the neck region with an open hand but it was generally deemed a very harsh decision to dismiss the Burren clubman.
Lynn turned away holding his face, and McCorry believes that it was the Derry player’s reaction that prompted the red card.
“When Lynn sees it back he’ll probably be a wee bit embarrassed by it,” said McCorry.
“Everybody will try and play the game a wee bit and use it to their advantage and be cute but that’s really a part of our game I don’t think any manager likes to see.
“People talk about how bad ‘sledging’ is, nobody wants to see that, but that play-acting belongs to the realms of the soccer field rather than the Gaelic field.
“But it’s done and dusted now and we can do nothing about the scoreline but we can do something about the card itself.”
McCorry added that McGovern was “the last person that would strike in any game”.
“He wouldn’t swat a fly,” said McCorry. “You wouldn’t see a dirty tackle from Conaill. He marks tightly and he’s never even on the edge. It’s just not in his make-up.”
The Down manager did not approach the much-criticised Kinsella after the game in which his side lost by a point.
“There’s no point,” he said.
“You probably find that when you’re annoyed at something like that you use more emotion than rational thinking. There are channels that you can use and that’s what we intend to do.
“Refereeing is a job that nobody wants to do but everybody could do better. But nobody wants to put their head above the parapet and actually be the referee and make those calls.
“[But] it really was a big decision that cost us on the day. That’s our Ulster campaign over. All you want is a level playing field...
“It was a clear mistake by one of his umpires. That umpire is there to call points and wides. The referee has his officials on the sidelines and a fourth official. They should be making the big calls, not somebody who is maybe 60 yards away and probably didn’t have a good angle on it.
“To see that as striking is beyond me.”
There was some confusion over the amount of stoppage-time played at the end of Sunday’s quarter-final clash.
“Kinsella said two minutes and the fourth official put two minutes up but the announcer said four minutes,” McCorry explained.
“So that’s where the confusion came from. It wasn’t that big of an issue. At the time there was a bit of head-scratching but I didn’t pick up on that at all.”
Despite the manner of Down’s Ulster Championship exit, McCorry was encouraged by a lot of what he saw from his players in the second half as they prepare to face the losers of Sunday’s Leinster clash between Westmeath and Wexford, which will be another away day for the Mournemen on Saturday June 27.
“I learned again that we have great fighting qualities. When we were down to 14 men, playing Derry in their own backyard, we brought them right to the wire. We pushed them very, very hard.
“I take a lot of positives from that. But we need more composure in front of goal."
