The Tyrone County Board has confirmed that the Minor Football Championship will not be completed this year as a controversy drags on.
The competition has been at a standstill since last September due to a dispute which has seen a protracted appeals process over a quarter-final tie between Dromore and Trillick.
All five clubs still involved in the series have been officially informed that it will not resume until 2024.
And there’s no end in sight to the saga which has halted the championship in its tracks.
Dromore have lodged an appeal into their expulsion from the competition, having opted not to take part in a penalty shoot-out when their quarter-final against Trillick finished level after extra-time.
That was back in September, and the championship will not be completed in the current calendar year.
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Eglish, Cookstown and holders Donaghmore have qualified for the semi-finals, and have been forced to sit it out as the appeals sequence unfolds.
The stalemate has forced Tyrone GAA to withdraw from representation in the Ulster Minor Tournament at St Paul’s, Belfast.
The Red Hand champions are due to play host club St Paul’s in a preliminary round tie this weekend, but the Antrim title-holders have been given a bye to face Mayobridge of Down.
The winners of the Dromore-Trillick tie are due to face defending champions Donaghmore, while Eglish take on Cookstown in the semi-finals.
While Donaghmore are chasing a third successive title, Eglish are on course to complete the league and championship double at minor level, in what would be a glorious climax to a bumper season for their under-age teams.
Their U14 (Gr 1) and U16 (Gr 2) sides have both doubled up with league and championship success, and the minors are in line to make it a glorious treble for the St Patrick’s.
