Back-to-Back AIB all-Ireland club title winner Kieran Molloy admits he felt cheated by the GAA last year.
The talented wing back memorably dashed from Tullamore and Corofin’s 2018 All-Ireland semi-final win to appear as a sub in the Sigerson Cup final in Dublin.
Molloy plays for NUI Galway and reached the Trinity sports grounds in Santry in time to participate in the last 20 minutes of their one-point defeat to UCD.
It all worked out on the club front for Molloy who is the new AIB Club Footballer of the Year.
But he’s never forgiven the GAA for placing him in that situation last year and can’t believe there were similar headaches again this year.
Asked if he felt let down and cheated, Molloy said: “I definitely did, yeah, by the GAA.”
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The 22-year-old added: “The fixtures, I don’t know how they messed up the fixtures again this year.
“I think they had it [the Sigerson game] the day after the club game this year. I was talking to someone before it and I said it shouldn’t happen again because we could get this far again, at least have them a week apart, but they didn’t.
“It’s frustrating, of course it is, because you don’t get any rest or recovery and you just have to get on with it.
“Your mind has to switch straight away and it is hard to do that from game to game.”
Molloy’s Corofin clubmate Liam Silke plays for UCD but sat out last year’s Sigerson final due to the clash. Silke also missed this year’s Sigerson semi-final because UCD’s game, which they lost, was on the same day as Corofin’s semi-final against Gweedore.
NUI Galwaywere successful with a postponement request fortheir Sigerson semi-final by a day to allow Molloy be involved but UCD didn’t push for the same arrange- ment as they felt it would be unfair on Silke.
Molloy said: “Liam had the same problem as me but they still didn’t sort it for him. There was also [David] Shaw from Dr Crokes who had the same thing as well.
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“So three players in the All- Ireland semi-finals with their club and they still didn’t manage to sort it. I think it’s non- sense how it wasn’t sorted.”
Project and Construction Management student Molloy has another year at college and is praying the clash doesn’t happen a third time in 2020.
He said: “I hope it won’t happen again if we do get as far in the club championship and with the college. I’m hopeful it won’t happen again.”
Molloy returned to the Galway setup after Corofin’s success along with All-Star Ian Burke, Bernard Power and Silke.
He said it feels like there is no end to GAA activity though he isn’t complaining.
Molloy said: “Three or four weeks after the All-Ireland we were back into it with a club league game. We were back in with Galway then the weekend after the All-Ireland.
"I’d exams also, the Tuesday after the club final on Sunday, so I didn’t get much celebrating in at all. Straight in, no celebrating, no stopping. Just keep going.”
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