OPINION - Ballyheane's appeal is thrown out

BALLYHEANE'S appeal to the Connacht FA over the harshness of the suspensions and fine handed out
by the Mayo FA over their failure to release their players for the Mayo Oscar Traynor Cup team, has been ruled out on a technicality.

The provincial body said that the club did not send an identical copy of their documents, to Mayo League secretary, John Durkan, as is required. The club claims otherwise. Ballyheane will now appeal this ruling to the FAI.
The club’s original ill-advised decision was in protest at the Mayo League refixing of a match for a
Thursday evening, when their players were unavailable. The Mayo League’s disciplinary committee
fined the club €1,000 and banned four named individuals from involvement in the game for twelve
months.

In addition, the League also banned three Ballyheane players from participation in the county
set-up, for two years. The draconian punishment was met with disbelief in Mayo football circles and
beyond.
The latest development poses the questions: just how many more wrongs will have to be done
before the ridiculous punishment is lifted, and what, if any, action the wider Mayo League
management committee will take, over its disciplinary body that is clearly out of step with common
sense.

Surely, punishments above a fairly low threshold, should have to be signed-off by the wider
board, to prevent a recurrence of this fiasco.