Galway county football champions Corofin were stunned on Tuesday afternoon when receiving an email from Connacht Council informing them their fine had been increased by another €500 after the club’s Monday night appeal.
The club had previously received fines totalling €5,100 after the council undertook a special investigation into the post-match scenes that saw inexperienced Mayo referee Liam Devenney escorted off the field in Kiltoom after Corofin’s one-point defeat to St Brigid's of Roscommon in the Connacht club football final.
Corofin were initially hit with a €4,000 fine for "disruptive misconduct by players, team officials and supporters" and received another €1,100 in fines on top of that for breach of match-day regulations.
On Monday night the Connacht hearings committee, consisting of 10 GAA administrators, including Mayo’s John Prenty, who is the full-time paid provincial secretary for Connacht, decided to add an additional €500 to the original €4,000 fine, while the appeal against the €1,100 for togging too many subs and warming up on the wrong area was also fruitless.
Corofin was represented at the appeal by club chairman Bernie Glynn and club secretary Fintan Forde.
The Corofin club is stunned by the increase in the fine which now totals €5,600, making a huge dent in the club’s coffers.
