Meath’s victory in the Leinster final will stand, as the county board has ruled out the possibility of a replay
Following Meath’s controversial victory against Louth in Sunday’s Leinster final, there had been a slight possibility that a replay would take place. However, Meath have publicly stated that they will not allow for a rematch, a decision that has ultimately been made by the players.
The meath county board released the following statement; “The Executive met for an hour after earlier holding discussions with team management and players. The players had indicated they were not in favour of a re-fixture”. They went on to say, “The Executive have supported the stance of the players and they say, as far as they are concerned, that is the end of the matter”.
The GAA decided after the match that the result would stand unless Meath decided to let Louth have a rematch. The GAA decided to stick by official guidelines, which state that a result is final as soon as the referee submits the final score. However, they did make it clear that a rematch would be possible should Meath be willing to offer one.
Louth fans will feel that they have a right to feel angry about the decision, as match referee Martin Sludden admitted after the match that he was wrong to allow Joe Sheridan’s last-minute goal to stand. Louth now have to face a round four tie in the All-Ireland Senior Championship.