EMIRATES TO HOST HURLING.

Byline: By PAT NOLAN

THE Interprovincial Hurling Championship is set to be confirmed for Abu Dhabi by tomorrow.

The game will take place on March 14 after Etihad Airways, sponsors of the hurling Championship, came on board to fund the trip after previous attempts to hold a Championship game and the Fitzgibbon Cup final in the UAE failed.

It comes after GAA president Nickey Brennan played down the possibility of the Association continuing to splash out on a competition which has little public interest.

The football final will take place in Ireland after plans to hold it in England on the same weekend had to be scrapped because of a clash with the NFL.

Brennan said: "I made it clear all along that maybe the inter-pros are on borrowed time but I think people have been setting expectations too high.

"I have never said that the inter-provincial should be done away but in terms of the competition, they're clearly not competitions that will attract crowds any more. The GAA is not against the playing of the competitions but getting a slot in the calendar is a real, real problem.

"The idea of going to Abu Dhabi this year is that Etihad are taking the teams out and footing most of the bill.

"That's why is happening and it's maybe a one off.

"Once people accept that we can have inter-provincial championships but that they are not going to be crowd pull events then that's fine."

CAPTION(S):

DECISION Nickey Brennan