Wexford GAA board finally see sense as championship is rescheduled for Electric Picnic

Wexford GAA will call a gap week in the club championship to coincide with the staging of Electric Picnic.

The fifth round of the hurling championship had been marked for the weekend of August 29 to 31, but the schedule has been put back a week following Wexford senior hurling and football early exits.

Wexford chairman John Kenny said they received a lengthy list of requests to change fixtures for the same weekend in 2024, due to the festival, and this played a big part in their decision to change the schedule this year.

The festival is held in Stradbally, Co Laois, from August 29 to 31.

According to the Irish Independent, the move has reportedly left many Wexford clubs bemused, given the recent free weekend for the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, held in Wexford.

But Kenny told the Irish Independent: “The CCC [Competitions Control Committee] based it on what went on on that weekend last year. We had requests coming in from all over the place and everybody wanting to play their matches on a certain day at a certain time.

“So we just had the weekend free in the calendar. Unfortunately, we were out of our inter-county championships earlier than we had hoped this year and we just had the weekend to play with and we said we’d put it in then.

“Some clubs are happy with it and I’ll be honest with you, some clubs are not but we had the week to play with and we just felt that it was also an opportunity, this was signalled six weeks ago.

“So if somebody wanted to go away for a weekend that it was an opportunity to do it, it wasn’t just necessarily to go to Electric Picnic. There are a few clubs that weren’t altogether happy.

“But every weekend clubs want to change fixtures, and it’s just not possible. After that gap weekend, we’re effectively into a knock-out championship after the Electric Picnic weekend.”