THE O’Donovan Rossa hurlers are hoping their captain Stephen Beatty will be free to play in Sunday’s Antrim SHC quarter-final against Loughgiel after being red-carded in their last championship game.
At tonight’s CCC hearing, Beatty will claim he was sent off through 'mistaken identity' during their final group game against Dunloy.
Beatty, who has represented the Antrim footballers and hurlers in the past, was mystified when the referee approached him and issued a red card for something he allegedly said to an umpire.
At the time the Rossa captain pleaded with the referee it wasn’t him and indeed one of Beatty’s team-mate insisted that it was him – not Beatty – who’d shown disrespect towards the umpire.
Dunloy won the game but Rossa were already guaranteed a quarter-final berth by virtue of finishing second in Group One and are scheduled to play Loughgiel Shamrocks at Dunsilly on Sunday (5pm).
It is understood Beatty and the Rossa team-mate, who had owned up to the verbal abuse charge, approached the match official afterwards to explain what had happened.
But the referee’s report remained consistent with his umpire’s account. Last Sunday, the Rossa footballers exited the championship with dual player Michael Armstrong forced out through injury after 15 minutes in the defeat to Creggan Kickhams.
However, the Rossa management team are still hopeful Beatty and Armstrong will both be available for Sunday’s quarter-final showdown with Loughgiel.
In the Sunday’s quarter-final, Ballycastle take on St John’s at the earlier time of 1pm, also in Dunsilly.
Meanwhile, former Tyrone forward Ronan O'Neill will join the Fermanagh senior football management team where he joins his former Omagh CBS teacher and coach Kieran Donnelly.
