Antrim manager Davy Fitzgerald lashed out at the match officials following his side's Leinster SHC defeat to Galway, pledging to "go to Croke Park" after Declan McCloskey was sent off just before half-time.
Galway chalked up their third win in this year's Leinster championship as they strolled to a 28-point victory over Antrim at Salthill.
While Fitzgerald admitted that Galway were by far the better side and that he was disappointed by Antrim’s performance, he launched an astonishing broadside on linesman Johnny Murphy who spotted an off the ball incident which led to McCloskey’s red card.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport, Fitzgerald claimed that McCloskey’s dismissal came about after he reacted to being punched, appearing to suggest that he’s ready to lodge a complaint to the GAA.
"Once the man was sent off, it was over. Our issue with the sending off, and we wouldn't have won, by the way, but he got a punch in his stomach before that and nothing was done," he said.
"The way one of our players was treated by the officials is something about we're going to go to Croke Park and talk about it. We’re not happy with that.
"Would it have made a difference? No way. We weren’t near Galway’s class today but there’s certain things in the GAA we have to look at and that’s it.
"We are not happy with our performance, that's the most important thing there. In the second half, we lost our shape. We knew what we wanted to do but we weren’t good, Galway were better that us.
"We need to look at ourselves and we’ll sort that out but there are other things that are not acceptable and I won’t accept what happened in the first half.
"When you get a punch and you retaliate that means there’s two players, not one."
Fitzgerald went on to claim that he is "despised" by a section of match officials within the GAA.
"It was Johnny Murphy that seen it and Johnny Murphy now wouldn’t have any time for me anyway - that’s out there.
"Everybody knows that himself and one or two more of them, they actually despise me and that's fine, I can get over that. But don't take it out on the players, you have to see everything.
"Would that have made a difference? It wouldn’t have made a difference, Galway were way better than us and there’s no getting away from that. I’m disappointed with how we played in the second half, we didn’t fight the way we should have fought, it was too easy for Galway out there."
