New York will not make Ulster final date

The Ulster hurling final between Antrim and New York definitely won't be played in Casement Park, Belfast, on June 4th as scheduled.

The chairman of the New York board, Séamus Dooley, yesterday confirmed the team wasn't in a position to travel for the final on such short notice, and last night the Ulster Council turned down New York's request for a postponed and confirmed June 4th at Casement Park as the date and venue for the final.

New York's surprise semi-final win over Derry at Gaelic Park, New York, on Sunday has apparently left them with two options - travel for the final on Sunday week, or give Antrim a walkover.

Earlier yesterday the New York Board had submitted a formal request for a two-week postponement, which Dooley believed presented the only chance of the final being played.

"We will not be in Belfast on June 4th," he said from New York yesterday. "It's just not possible for us. We've submitted our request for a two-week postponement by email, and were told the Ulster Council would get back to us. But we feel we have several grounds for the postponement. There was no way we could organise airline tickets and accommodation for a group of over 40 people in time. Cost was one thing, because we were quoted $1,800 per airline ticket, and that just wasn't feasible.

"The other problem is organising the necessary time off work for the players involved, and there are various visa issues as well. I know no one expected us to beat Derry, but we always felt we had a chance . . . I think it would be terribly unfair if we miss out on the final at this stage."

It has also been suggested that New York had further concerns about travelling to Belfast because certain members of the panel mightn't be properly documented and therefore might be unable to gain re-entry to the US.

On Monday, however, the Ulster Council stated several reasons for their inability to grant a postponement. New York are the only team guaranteed home advantage for the semi-finals every year, and on top of that Antrim are due out in the Christy Ring Cup on June 11th when they play Down, a game perhaps of more importance than the Ulster final.

Dooley made one other suggestion, that Antrim travel to New York, and that was discussed as a possible solution. Antrim, however, are not in a position to travel for similar reasons of trying to finalise arrangements in time.

New York's victory marked their first success since joining the Ulster championship in 2001.