Antrim threaten to boycott Ulster SFC if they cannot host Armagh

Michael Bolton

Antrim could pull out of their Ulster Senior Football Championship quarter-final against All-Ireland champions Armagh if the game is not in Corrigan Park.

Antrim were drawn to play Armagh on April 13th, with Andy McEntee's side selected to have home advantage.

However, due to the capacity of Corrigan Park, Ulster GAA has said the game could be moved elsewhere in the province.

Speaking to BBC NI, Antrim footballer Paddy McBride said: ""As everyone knows, we're drawn out at home to play an Ulster Championship game and we're being told as usual that we're going somewhere else.

"The frustration is we want to play a home match and we're saying if it's not there, we'll probably not play it.

"We want to play on our own pitch when we have a home game. It sounds so simple - you have a home match you play at home."

"We said we sacrifice too much to lie down. If it's not going to be where it's meant to be, then we'll not play it.

"It's one we all agreed with. It wasn't deliberated on, it wasn't debated, we just said this is what we're standing for and we're sticking with it."

In a statement from Ulster GAA, they said: "Corrigan Park has a certified capacity of 4,000. The minimum number of tickets required to accommodate this fixture (including players charter, match officials, multi-sponsors, media, season tickets etc) will exceed the venue capacity. Therefore, Corrigan Park does not meet the required health and safety standard to accommodate this fixture.

"Ulster GAA met with Antrim GAA officials last month to review the situation in detail, and those discussions remain ongoing."