*Clare manager, Brian Lohan. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
Brian Lohan has shared his disgust and frustration with the controversial penalty awarded to Tipperary and sin-bin given to Aidan McCarthy in Sunday’s Munster senior hurling semi-final.
Clare held a 2-12 1-13 lead over Tipperary when Jake Morris was fouled by McCarthy. The decision of referee James Owens to deem that it was a goal-scoring opportunity resulted in a penalty and the Inagh/Kilnamona attacker spending ten minutes in the sin bin.
Jason Forde nets a penalty for @TipperaryGAA v @GaaClare in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship Semi-Final #GAANOW pic.twitter.com/YA3WBlxBZN
— The GAA (@officialgaa) July 4, 2021
With the aid of an extra man, Liam Sheedy’s Tipperary outscored Clare 2-04 0-02 in what was a crucial period during the provincial semi-final.
A visibly annoyed Lohan said after Sunday’s game, “We’re very frustrated with it absolutely, our lads don’t deserve that, they trained hard, trained well, came down and gave their all, I’m so disgusted with that decision. It’s not the first time James Owens has been involved in a decision like that, last year when David McInerney was sent off James Owens was involved in that so very frustrated with it”.
There was a strong consensus from the personnel that spoke with the Clare boss between the final whistle and his interviews that McCarthy did not deny Morris of a goal scoring opportunity. “I don’t know where the referee got his interpretation, I’d say he was the only man on the ground that saw a goal scoring opportunity out of that, Aidan I thought went for the ball but mistimed the tackle, how he called a penalty and sent one of our guys off I’m just very frustrated with it”.
Lohan rubbished a suggestion that referees need to explain their decisions in a better manner to players and mentors while he confirmed he did not speak with the Wexford match official in the aftermath of the decision. “No it doesn’t help, I don’t want any explanation, I’m not concerned about an explanation of it, it gives me no pleasure or anyone here no pleasure to see a referee booed off the field at the end of a game but it was his own fault”.
He had no complaints with the rule itself which was introduced this year prior to the Allianz National Hurling League. “I’ve no problem with the rule, the rule is no problem but you expect that the referee would be able to interpret the rule properly. I don’t know tell me am I out of order here, everyone had a good view of it, it is so frustrating”.
“We came down to play well, we trained hard, we’ve worked hard over the whole winter to try get ourselves in shape and to be hit with a suckerpunch like that is very frustrating,” the Shannon native added.
Daithi O’Connell who is part of the Clare backroom team took to Twitter on Sunday evening where he criticised the decision. “Tipp got a PENALTY for a foul that was committed closer to the Ennis Road than it was to the goal line, mad stuff”.
