Corrigan Park confirmed as Antrim-Armagh venue

Corrigan Park will be the venue for the Ulster SFC quarter-final clash between Antrim and Armagh on 12 April, following confirmation at a meeting of the Ulster CCC on Monday night.

The U-turn by the governing body follows a determined campaign by the Antrim players and management, who had insisted they would refuse to fulfil the fixture if they were not given home advantage.

The capacity for the venue is 4,000 and will not be increased beyond that figure for the game. It means that many Armagh season ticket holders, of which there are over 3,000, will not gain entry to the venue.

The Ulster Council and Antrim GAA have had many correspondences over the last few week and days which resulted in Antrim providing a new proposal for the Ulster Council CCC which was put before the members last night.

Health and safety was a major concern, but these apprehensions have now been dealt with to a level that the game can go ahead at Antrim's home venue.

Even with home advantage, this Ulster Championship clash will be a a real David v Goliath affair considering the Saffrons were relegated to Division 4 of the Allianz League while Armagh are the reigning All-Ireland champions.

The Corrigan Park saga throws a light on the Casement Park, which has been closed since 2013 and the failure to redevelop the stadium would have avoided this controversy as well as providing a venue in Northern Ireland to host Euro 2028 games.

Ulster GAA confirmed the news via a statement this morning, saying they had received assurances from Antrim GAA since their last meeting on 6 March, which allowed them to reverse the orginal decision to stage the game in Newry.

"Corrigan Park has a certified capacity of 4,000 people. As ticket demand is likely to heavily outnumber availability, there will be no ticket concessions for this fixture.

"The early throw-in time (12.30pm) will also allow Armagh supporters to attend the Lidl Ladies NFL Division One final between Armagh and Kerry, which is being played in Croke Park later that day, should they so wish," read the statement, which used the opportunity to once again call for progress on the redevelopment of the main GAA ground in Belfast.

"Ulster CCC further re-iterated their desire for work to commence at Casement Park as soon as possible."

The Saffrons are pleased with their victory in the battle to maintain home advantage for the game.

They said: "Antrim GAA welcomes confirmation that the opening fixture of the Ulster Senior Football Championship versus Armagh will take place at Corrigan Park

"This aligns with our consistent view that Corrigan Park is the appropriate venue for the fixture

"We would like to thank Ulster GAA for their extensive engagement on this matter and we are pleased the correct decision has been made

"We now look forward to welcoming Antrim and Armagh Gaels to what will be a fantastic occasion at Corrigan Park."

The Ulster CCC also decided last night that the Ulster Ladies Football final between Armagh and Donegal, currently scheduled for 18 May, would be played as a 'curtain-raiser' to the men's decider, should the same two counties reach the final.

To facilitate this the men's final would be brought forward to Saturday, 10 May.

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