Sport faces weekend wipeout

GAA worst hit as deferral of hurling league games will force change of final date

IRISH sport is facing a virtual wipeout over the coming days as Storm Emma and the ‘Beast from the East’ combine to force the country into lockdown.

It will make for the possibly the bleakest first weekend in March in Irish sporting history. And with no signs of a rapid thaw early next week, the knockon effect could last for some time.

The GAA will be severely hit, with all 33 Allianz hurling and football games, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, likely to be postponed.

That creates a problem in hurling, which had catered for no free weekends prior to the Division 1 final on March 24. It will almost certainly mean postponing the final until Saturday, March 31, the day before the Division 1 and 2 football finals.

If another weekend were lost to bad weather, it would mean deferring the hurling and football final to April 7/8. That would upset local fixtures around the country as the last four weekends in April are due to be left free for club activity.

The GAA will announce their weekend and longer intentions tomorrow while other sports have already decided to cancel fixtures. Soccer: League of Ireland Premier and First Division fixtures (Tomorrow and Sunday) postponed – majority rescheduled for March 17-18; Celtic v Dundee, Hibernian v Hamilton and Motherwell v Aberdeen (Yesterday) postponed Rugby: Ulster v Glasgow Warriors (Tomorrow) rescheduled for weekend of April 20-22; Edinburgh v Munster (Tomorrow) and Scarlets v Leinster (Saturday) being monitored; Cheetahs v Connacht to go ahead in South Africa; Leinster Schools Junior Cup quarter-final and Munster Schools Senior Cup semi-finals (Yesterday) cancelled. Racing: Market Rasen, Musselburgh, Wincanton, Newcastle (all yesterday) Clonmel, Ludlow, Taunton (All today), Doncaster, Newbury, Dundalk (all tomorrow) abandoned; Navan (Saturday) in doubt.

Boxing: National novice finals (Tomorrow) postponed.

Athletics: World Indoor Championships in Birmingham unaffected Basketball: All-Ireland schools league finals (Yesterday and Today) postponed.