Issues in Relation to the Women's FAI Cup Final 2016
This is by far the most important post that I've ever placed on Foot.ie. It concerns the treatment of a Wexford Youths Women (WYW) player who was forced to miss the FAI Women's Cup Final in the Aviva last Sunday due to suspension. It has nothing to do with the result of that match but I'm aiming to ensure that the treatment she received is not dished out to anyone else. The player concerned is Kylie Murphy and she's the captain of WYW. I need hardly stress that this post is being made by me as a simple supporter of both Wexford Youths and WYW and that I'd do the same for any player from any team who was forced to miss out on a cup final in the Aviva and the only live women's match which is shown on national television. I don't hold any official position in Wexford Youths or WYW and this post is being made by me entirely without Kylie's knowledge or consent.
On 2 October 2016, I attended the standard WNL league game between WYW and Cork City WFC in Bishopstown. As is usual, I put in a report on the match on this site mainly for those Wexford Youths supporters who couldn't attend the match and for anyone else interested. As I recorded at the time, Kylie Murphy was sent off in the match with a straight red card. The incident concerned happened directly in front of me sitting in the stand in Bishopstown. I'll quote my report which is on the relevant thread below and which was posted on the same date as the match: -
"On 25 minutes, it looked even worse for Wexford as Kylie Murphy got a straight red for an innocuous push on a Cork player who attempted to obstruct her. Referee seemed to be reaching for a yellow (it was hardly even that), but changed it to a straight red so it may have been accompanied by some choice local Carlow dialect directed towards the referee - otherwise it was a bit of a joke."
I know that watching an incident for a single time live can be misleading but as far as I'm concerned, she didn't try to punch, elbow, throttle or loaf ("a Dublin term") the Cork player concerned. There was no attempt made by Kylie to tackle her opponent or to injure the Cork player in any respect whatsoever. At least one team, or maybe even both teams, made video recordings of the game. I've not seen any recordings of the game. However, a tweet was posted on the same day as the match in Cork from an active and well-known participant in women's football in that city stating that she was very sympathetic to Kylie who was the recipient of "strange decisions" on the day in question. (As I've not contacted the sender or recipient of that tweet in regard to this post I haven't posted a link but let's just say it's not hard to find).
What I didn't know at the time, and I presume that nobody did, is that this incident would apparently force Kylie Murphy to miss out on the blue riband event of women's football which was held in the Aviva Stadium on Sunday, 6 November 2016.
The second stage of this post now involves a mixture of both facts and reasonable conjecture as details of WNL suspensions are not made public, as far as I'm aware. The next match by WYW took place against UCD Waves in Jackson Park on Wednesday, 5 October 2016. It was another standard WNL league match. I also put in a report of the match on this website and recorded that Kylie Murphy was suspended and didn't play. This was expected as the consequence of a one-game automatic suspension following a red card and I've no problem with that. The result of the game is unimportant.
The next game which WYW played, which is of vital significance, was the FAI cup semi-final on Sunday, 9 October 2016 against Kilkenny which took place in Ferrycarrig Park. Kylie Murphy was deemed eligible to play, and did play, in this game. I put in a report on this website. The only thing that needs to be recorded is that WYW progressed to the cup-final in the Aviva.
Unknown to me at the time, but I have now confirmed (I think) that a disciplinary hearing took place on Thursday, 6 October 2016 in regard to the red card issued to Kylie Murphy at the Cork match in Bishopstown. I have no idea what took place at the hearing and I've not a clue as to who is responsible for taking decisions on disciplinary matters in the WNL. However, I'm reasonably certain that a decision was taken at that hearing to apply a further two-game suspension (i.e. three matches in all) to Kylie Murphy for the red card concerned. It is curious that, as a result of and following the date of the hearing, Kylie was able to participate in a cup semi-final but was suspended for the final.
The first indication to me, as a simple WYW supporter, that Kylie was facing suspensory issues in relation to the FAI Cup Final in the Aviva took place at the league match against Kilkenny on Tuesday, 1 November 2016. Not many WYW fans attend away matches but the group of WYW supporters who were there were discussing a two-match suspension for Kylie which would obviously take in the cup final. References were also being made to a finding of "violent conduct". Kylie obviously didn't play in the league match in Kilkenny on 1 November 2016 nor in the FAI Cup Final in the Aviva which took place on Sunday, 6 November 2016.
To cut a very long story short (apologies for the length of this post) and solely for the purposes of transparency, equity and justice in regard to the treatment generally of all WNL players going forward, I'm asking the following questions:-
(a) confirmation that Kylie Murphy received a three-match ban for the incident which took place in the match in Bishopstown on 2 October 2016 and that a finding of "violent conduct" was made;
(b) the release of any or all recordings that are still available of the incident involving Kylie Murphy in Bishopstown so that interested parties can see what gave rise to a three-match ban in the case concerned;
(c) details as to the exact reasons why it was considered appropriate to apply an additional two-match ban to the player concerned which ensured that she missed, in particular, the Women's FAI Cup Final in the Aviva on 6 November 2016.
If anyone can add further to this post or correct any errors I have made, I would be very very grateful.
With much thanks
