The Connacht and Ulster minor football championships have been halted after confirmation from the government that only senior intercounty championship games can proceed under Level 5.
Both underage championships will scheduled to begin this weekend, with Leitrim minors due to play Galway on Friday night at the Connacht GAA Centre of Excellence.
Leitrim minor manager Benny Guckian spoke to Ocean FM Sport’s Austin O’Callaghan:
The four Ulster minor football quarter-finals, including Donegal v Tyrone, were also down to be played this Saturday.
Both provinces had also planned to livestream every provincial minor championship game.
However, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan’s latest letter on October 15th to the Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly stressed the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) were allowing “senior inter-county” games to take place at the highest level of national Covid-19 restrictions.
This also means Saturday’s Under-20 All-Ireland final between Galway and Dublin will no longer go ahead.
Following clarification from the Department of Sport around the staging of inter-county fixtures, the GAA can confirm that as of midnight this evening, all minor and U20 inter-county competitions are paused until further notice. #GAA
— The GAA (@officialgaa) October 21, 2020
It’s not yet known if the GAA will attempt to re-schedule these championships for December or early in 2021 when, it’s hoped, Level 5 restrictions will have been eased.
