Deputy County Mayor Cllr Finbarr Harrington has said he has always ‘maintained his innocence’ after he was given a 12-match ban by the GAA.
The Beara-based Independent councillor and chairman of Garnish GAA received the suspension following an investigation by GAA officials into an incident during a Junior B football championship match between his club and Castlelyons in Ballingeary on May 9th last.
The GAA County Board’s latest progress report says the suspension was imposed under Rule 7.2 (e) arising from the May 9th match for ‘misconduct considered to have discredited the Association’.
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In a statement, Cllr Harrington said that based on the referee’s report and other disclosures on a game involving his club and Castlelyons, sanctions were imposed on both competing clubs and some individuals, himself included, and the duration of his sanction is now completed.
‘I have always maintained my innocence and continue to do so,’ he stated. ‘I have been involved in the GAA for 40 years, first as a player and later in various administrative roles and in that time I have never received a sanction of any kind. I now wish to put the matter behind me and move forward positively.’
He added that he remains committed to the GAA, his community and his responsibilities as a public representative. Cllr Harrington also suggested that ‘all GAA suspensions and disciplinary matters’ be reported ‘rather than focusing on one individual case’.
A second member of Garnish GAA club was given a three-match ban for what the GAA terms a ‘category four offence and gravity’ arising from the same match in Ballingeary.
A spokesperson for Cork County Council said the local authority does not comment on matters relating to third-party organisations or their internal processes.
Cllr Harrington was elected deputy county mayor at the council’s AGM in June.
