UCC selector Paul O'Keeffe says correct call was made to postpone their Sigerson Cup game

UCC selector Paul O’Keeffe says the right decision was made to postpone their game against UCD on Tuesday afternoon due to the weather.

The sides were to face off in the opening round of the Sigerson Cup at the Mardyke at 3.30pm, but following a pitch inspection at 12 noon on Tuesday, it was decided to call the game off despite UCD already half way down the road from Dublin.

With inter-county players on both sides, it’s hoped the game will be played possibly on Friday, with confirmation expected of a new date sometime on Wednesday.

“We had a few players doubtful in terms of getting to the game due to being snowed in,” the St Finbarr’s clubman said when speaking to The Echo on Tuesday afternoon.

“The weather is particularly very bad in Kerry and in North Cork and I know a few of our players from Kerry travelled up on Monday night in very treacherous conditions. In one sense, we were hoping the temperature would get up to some kind of reasonable level today, but it didn’t materialise.

UCC selector Paul O'Keeffe when he was manager of St Finbarr's in 2022. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

“We are all very disappointed but look, it will always be safety first. If the pitch is unplayable, it’s unplayable. We were hoping this morning that we would get a small bit of a temperature surge up to four or five degrees to thaw the pitch, which is why the call was made late to postpone the match.

“It was difficult driving conditions for UCD coming down from Dublin and I know they were nearly in Cork when the game got pulled. Everyone is affected really but we have no control over the weather unfortunately.

“Given the tight fixture schedule, the weather breaks on Friday and it will get a lot warmer over the weekend, up to seven degrees anyway, but I think the logistics are probably horrendous. Inter-county teams are training in preparation for the National League so that will create its own issues.”

Whenever the game is played, O’Keeffe is confident UCC will give last season’s beaten finalists a run for their money. At the end of the day, the Cork side won the Division 1 football league title last month following a two-point victory over DCU in the final.

“We are going well to be fair,” he says.

“Looking at the UCD team on paper, it looks like a formidable team. That won’t put the fear of God into us anyway. We are really looking forward to the game whenever it will be on. We are hoping it will be played this week, hopefully on Friday. It’s the game of the first round in my opinion. Training has been going really well, a few injury concerns but that’s the case with every team.

UCC won the Sigerson Cup as recently as 2023. Picture: INPHO/Laszlo Gezo

“The embargo on the inter-county teams did help us in December. The teams couldn’t return to training until early December so we were able to get a lot more done and less intense for lads on inter-county panels. It worked out reasonably well for us. We were also able to get together over the Christmas period with good numbers.

“In terms of preparation for the Sigerson Cup, it has actually been the best prep for a number of years but that is with that protected interval from inter-county training, which has helped us. But, once you come into January then it gets very congested.

"If the first National League game [weekend of Saturday, January 25] was pushed back another week or two, I feel you would have a great Sigerson Cup. But, I understand that we are down the pecking order nationally in terms of priority and all that.” O’Keeffe concluded.

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