Despite much criticism, the GAA confirmed that the All Ireland semi-final replay between Mayo and Kerry will go ahead as planned at the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick rather than Croke Park, which will be the scene of the Croke Park Classic.
The Mayo County Board had confirmed that they had lodged an objection to the choice of venue, which they say gives an unfair advantage to Kerry.
Instead, Mayo had requested that the match be pushed back a further week so that it could be restored to Croke Park, but the GAA pressed ahead with the Limerick venue.
The GAA's Head of Media Relations, Alan Milton, joined us on the line to explain the decision.
"This has been in gestation for 18 months. It wasn't taken willy nilly. If you look back over the semi-finals down through the years, of the last 56, four have finished level so you weigh up the options and you do a risk assessment of a situation. With those odds and as keen as we are to promote Croke Park as a venue - obviously primarily for Gaelic Games but when the opportunity arises for other codes such as the one that's taking place on Saturday - it was a democratic decision by the Ard Chomhairle," he said.
Milton feels the replay cannot be pushed back by another week in case that match in turn ends in a draw and goes to another replay.
Milton also said he feels that it is a positive to take big games outside Croke Park to places like Limerick.
Listen to the full interview via the podcast:
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
