Cork senior hurling manager Gerald McCarthy has again insisted that he will not be forced out of his role and has accused senior players of trying to 'appoint their own managers.'
This latest crisis to hit Cork hurling comes of the back of a threat by players to make themselves unavailable for selection should McCarthy not step down as manager.
The Cork playing squad were given two seats on the managerial selection committee following their initial strike earlier in the year, however when it came to McCarthy's reappointment as manager they were reported to have been outvoted by a margin of two to five.
Ben O'Connor yesterday confirmed that the playing staff are unwilling to turn out for their county until McCarthy is removed and said: 'This panel are ready to go the whole distance, we're ready to pull out, tell them to work away next year.'
However, McCarthy has now hit back and said: 'I have watched with growing disbelief and distress the way in which this latest Cork hurling controversy has escalated in recent days.
'I have tried my best to understand how players have painted themselves into a corner and have threatened to undertake a course of action that will be hugely detrimental to Cork hurling.
'I have regrettably come to the conclusion that there is a pre-disposition to conflict among a very small number of Cork players,' he added.
'The fundamental issue here is whether players have a right to effectively appoint their own managers or veto the appointment of managers. I don't believe they should. It is undesirable, unworkable and untenable.'
McCarthy also accused senior players, like O'Connor, of exerting pressure on younger and less experienced players, forcing them to tow the line.
'I am desperately saddened at the manner in which younger players have been dragged into something that has nothing to do with hurling or sport. But I fully understand how difficult it must be not to be influenced by senior players whom they hold in such high esteem,' he said.
'If these young players are disposed to learning, they are on the cusp of great careers. My advice to them is to focus on hurling, not on the politics of hurling. They should be true to their ambition to be great hurlers and to represent their County.'
'Some players are coming close to the end of their careers. If, for whatever reason, they do not wish to play under my management next season, fair enough. But for them to contaminate the atmosphere for up and coming, promising players would be a tragedy for everyone involved in Cork hurling,' McCarthy concluded.
