The London Senior Hurling Squad would like to register their serious disappointment with the Ulster Council at their refusal to reschedule the Ulster SHC semi-final with Down this Sunday, June 13.

London play Armagh in the second round of the Nicky Rackard Cup in Crossmaglen on Saturday afternoon, June 12, and are expected to play again the following day in the Ulster championship. The London Co Board have requested that the Ulster SHC tie be moved but, to date, the Ulster Council have refused to accede to the request.

The London squad will travel back to London on Saturday evening on pre-arranged flights and will not be fulfilling the Ulster semi-final fixture on Sunday. However, it is hoped that common sense might still prevail at this late stage and that the game will be re-fixed for a later date.

Speaking about the situation, London hurler and spokesperson John Joe Burke said; “No team should be required to play two competitive championship matches in 24 hours, this is a serious player welfare issue. And it is hard to think of any other squad being asked to fulfil such a farcical schedule. As far as we’re concerned, there is no reason why the Ulster Council can’t apply some flexibility here, the Ulster championship does not feed into the national competitions. Of course we want to play the two games but within a rational timeframe.”