Contrary to reports yesterday that Families Acting for Innocent Relatives (Fair) is keen to march down O'Connell Street as soon as possible, sources close to the organisers of last week's parade say rescheduling the event would serve no purpose.

"The organisers don't want to publicly say that, because it would look like republicans had won, " the source said. "But going back to Dublin would be irresponsible. It would put tremendous pressure on the Garda and there would be no guarantee the march would get down O'Connell Street on the second attempt.

"Good, law-abiding people travelled to Dublin last weekend, but there are troublemakers who want to go down now . . . goodness knows what would happen."

Fair spokesman, Willie Frazer, said he had received dozens of phone calls and emails from the Republic, three-quarters of which were supportive.

"A lot of southerners are apologetic. They've no reason to apologise. It was only a minority caused the trouble, " he said.

Meanwhile, a senior Ulster Unionist is opposing a Garda recruitment drive in the north, despite the injuries officers suffered while protecting loyalists last weekend.

Assembly member Michael McGimpsey said the force shouldn't have been at a recruitment fair in Belfast's Waterfront Hall on Thursday, and shouldn't be invited back.

It was the first time gardai took part in the event.

McGimpsey said: "It's totally unprecedented for a foreign police force to enter another country and poach its citizens.

The British army do not recruit in the Republic. It's tramping all over respect for our separate jurisdictions as laid out in the Belfast Agreement."

McGimpsey acknowledged gardai had protected loyalists in Dublin: "They protected me when I attended anti-IRA rallies down there too. I've no problem with the Garda corporately or individually. This is the Irish government pushing them in a political direction."

DUP MP Jeffrey Donaldson, who praised gardai last weekend, declined to comment. However, Fair spokesman, Willie Frazer, welcomed the Garda: "I hope young protestants join in droves.

"We must embrace new thinking. Northern Ireland has an Englishman as chief constable, and MI5 . . . more Englishmen . . . run our intelligence war. So if local people join the gardai, that's great.

"They"ll be serving in the south, not the north. It'll drive republicans mad. They'll be always looking over their shoulder."