Corofin deny spying on rivals Gaoth Dobhair

COROFIN have denied filming their All-Ireland football semi-final opponents Gaoth Dobhair in the build-up to tomorrow’s game at Carrick-on-Shannon. The Connacht champions and reigning holders have been accused by Kevin Cassidy of going to great lengths to document the Ulster champions’ play, evoking the recent ‘spying’ furore in English football when Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa admitted to spying on every single one of the other teams in the Championship. ‘We came to Dublin to play St Brigid’s in a challenge match and they had two or three cameras there filming the game,’ claimed Cassidy. ‘They have everything tied down. That’s why they are at the top, because they leave nothing to chance.’ But Corofin chairman Michael Ryder rejected that claim, saying: ‘Any neutral is entitled to go to a match but we had no-one picked to go there. We didn’t even know they were playing — we heard about it after alright — but no, we don’t go there.’ Cassidy also revealed how the Ulster club champions have tried to tap into the best way to handle the extended winter lay-off, talking to players who have been in the same position. ‘A lot of us have friends who

have been in this situation, so we touched base with them to try to get advice on how they approached it. ‘The likes of James McCarthy [Ballymun Kickhams], Eamon Fennell [St Vincent’s] and the Crossmaglen lads. ‘Just bouncing it off them. The likes of the McGees [Neil and Eamon] have other friends who have been there. ‘So we just tried to see what’s the best way to go forward as it’s our first time. We had a long campaign with county and Ulster, so we rested the bodies and then we were mad to get back. ‘That few weeks’ break, they know what to do, they know how to approach it, they don’t have to ring anyone because they’ve been here, so it’s a massive advantage for them but I suppose they had to start somewhere as well,’ he added.