Cork Hurling: Valley Rovers v Cloyne called off due to serious injury

The Co-Op SuperStores PIHC encounter between Valley Rovers and Cloyne was called off on Saturday afternoon due to a serious injury.

This quarter-final contest at sun-splashed Cobh was only three minutes old when unfortunately Valley Rovers' full-back John Cottrell suffered a serious leg injury.

Cloyne had got the first score after two minutes through a Brian O’Shea free before the game was called to a halt.

The vastly experienced referee Mark Maher immediately stopped the contest once it became clear of the severity of the injury.

Medical teams from both sides dealt with Cottrell for 20 minutes before an ambulance arrived and took the player off the field.

But due to the condition of the section of the field where the injury occurred, it wasn’t possible for the match to proceed.

The game will have to be replayed in the coming weeks. A date isn’t known at this stage. Valley Rovers face Carbery Rangers in the McCarthy Insurance Group Premier SFC relegation play-off next Saturday in Enniskeane.

The man in the middle Maher spoke to The Echo after the game was called off.

“I consulted former referee Niall Barrett, who was one of my umpires, and there was a lot of blood around the goalmouth.

“It was a health and safety reason as to why it was called off. Once I saw the poor young player that went off, he was losing a lot of blood and it was clear the pitch wasn't playable. 

“It’s a disappointment for everybody. I had to take off work and we came out from the city to get down to Cobh and everything.

“It’s going to be a headache for the county board, but safety always comes first. Safety always comes first when something like this happens. It’s a duty of care to the players and at the end of the day, that was my duty today to call it off."

The Valley Rovers chairperson is John O’Donovan and his thoughts are with his injured player.

“Look, the main thing is that John Cottrell is alright. That’s the main thing," he said shortly after the game was brought to an end before time.

“I just saw the ball went into the square, the ball went wide and next thing I see an umpire flagging the ref as John was down.

“Everyone was of the opinion that it was the correct decision to call off the game. Cloyne seemed to be of the opinion that the safety of the player was the most important thing and Mark Maher is an experienced ref and he called it and who are we to argue with him?

“John Cottrell, obviously he has been a great servant to our club. He would be a nephew of the late Paudie Palmer. John’s family would be steeped in Valley Rovers.

“Please God John recovers and he will get through this. The right people are looking after him.” 

VALLEY ROVERS: C Desmond; J O’Driscoll, J Cottrell, T McGrath; C Johnson, E Guinane, B McCarthy; M Woods, S Ryan; J Walsh, A Kenneally, H O’Sullivan; C Butler, J Kenneally, E Crowley.

CLOYNE: D Cronin; J Sherlock, J Hallahan, A Sherlock; E Motherway, P O’Sullivan, C Mullins; D Byrne, E Motherway; C Cahill, B O’Shea, N Cahill; M Cahill, I Cahill, J O’Brien.

Referee: Mark Maher (St Finbarr’s).