The issue of letting the game flow

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Plain of the Herbs
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The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Plain of the Herbs »

A young chap was knocked unconscious in today’s U16 ‘B’ hurling Final in an incident that was crucial to the game’s outcome.

With four minutes remaining Eimhin Kelly gained possession around halfway, put the ball on his hurl and headed in the direction of the opposition’s goal. He had done this several times during the match and on at least two prior occasions was hit with a hefty frontal charge. No free was awarded. Evidently targeted by the opposition. Presumably because he remained on his feet (a feat, given the strength of the blow0 and retained possession. In the sacred name of ‘let the game flow’, but I am presuming this.

On that 57th minute occasion the lad was not so lucky. Hit frontally, another opponent slid in, took his legs from under him and Kelly landed on his head. When he regained consciousness following an extremely worrying period of over five minutes, the remaining five minutes was played out in a stony hushed silence. CRC won the match but after what happened, no-one really cared. What might have been an explosive situation was diffused when the St Rynagh’s club announced on the public address that no one would be allowed onto the pitch at game’s end.

Presenting the cup, Padraig Boland thanked the referee and officials (as you expect) but went on to credit the referee with keeping the game flowing. Here lies the rub.

This is a debate hurling needs to have. I’ve been consistent on the issue of letting the game flow for a number of years now, so this is not a knee-jerk reaction on my part. For me a foul is a foul is a foul. And in hurling the advantage IS the free, given that most adult teams contain a freetaker who can convert a free from 90 metres now. Camogie players can point frees from the ’65 now, as balls become lighter.

Technique in the tackle is a skill and appears to be ignored, the cry of “don’t be fouling” seemingly the only advice on tackling technique offered to players. Because referees appear to operate to a quota system where they award one free every three minutes or so. That’s 23 frees, about a dozen to each team, which is about acceptable to the ‘let the game flow’ merchants. And so what’s a free one minute is waved away a minute later at the other end of the field.

It concerned me during the summer on RTE television when Cyril Farrell was very quick to silence Dónal Óg Cusack when the latter made the point that the rules needed to be observed (I can't remember the match in question). Cusack is well on the way to be hurling’s greatest analyst.

Another issue is that some reporters who don’t understand the game rank the performance of a referee in inverse proportion to the number of frees awarded, which is crazy logic. One local paper in this county has appointed itself as a referee’s assessor and generally uses the ‘inverse proportion’ method above.

Now, I don’t expect Eimhin Kelly, or anyone else for that matter, to be allowed solo run unhindered through an opposition defence. And I do realise that the rules were designed a hundred years ago, ever before anyone ever put a ball on a hurl and ran with it, and so there is little a defender can do legally with a forward running at him. But I do expect a level of protection be provided for each player by referees.

Eimhin Kelly is recovering at home tonight and will be alright. And maybe some time in the future a chairman will present a cup, thank the referee and note he did a good job protecting the players.
Pat Donegan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

The Bogman
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by The Bogman »

I was at this match as a neutral today and I'd have to fully agree with POTH. Whatever about the referees performance, and to me it was very poor, but it was actually embarrassing to see/hear the Co board chairman praise the referee for letting the game flow when no.1 this flies directly in the face of the rulebook and no.2 in doing so a young lad received a very worrying looking injury. TBH if I was a Lusmagh person and had to listen to that coming from the county board chairman after what I'd witnessed I would have been absolutely fuming.

Plain of the Herbs
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Plain of the Herbs »

Thank you TB for that post. It's reassuring to read the observations of a neutral observer, given that I was anything but neutral yesterday.
The Bogman wrote:I was at this match as a neutral today and I'd have to fully agree with POTH. Whatever about the referees performance, and to me it was very poor, but it was actually embarrassing to see/hear the Co board chairman praise the referee for letting the game flow when no.1 this flies directly in the face of the rulebook and no.2 in doing so a young lad received a very worrying looking injury. TBH if I was a Lusmagh person and had to listen to that coming from the county board chairman after what I'd witnessed I would have been absolutely fuming.
Pat Donegan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

kingscounty
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by kingscounty »

Wasn't at the game, he would be an experienced ref I presume it was Tony Carroll from reading the fixtures in the paper!

Sharp Eye
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Sharp Eye »

Not the First Time for this ref to be harsh on one team for steps and allow the other get away with illegal physical contact. Hope the young player who was seriously injured will gain a full recovery and that he will continue to hurl after this unforgivable incident.

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Lone Shark
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Lone Shark »

I wasn't at this game so I won't comment on this particular incident, but in the general case I'd agree completely with POTH that this is a discussion that needs to be had, and it's not just about one referee so to let that be the focus would be to miss the point. It can be great to watch those games when the referee throws the ball in and does little more than keep time from then on, particularly when the game gathers momentum and the two sides are able for the physical stuff - but it's not hurling in the sense of how the rules are framed right now and it's asking for trouble as there will be a few incidents like this where a player won't just be able to get up and shake it off.

An unspoken code has developed in the game right now where the player in possession is allowed to take six or seven steps and to essentially bullock straight through a tackle, while the defender in turn is allowed to put his arm over the shoulder of the attacker and drape the hurl across him, and then to pull and grab with the free hand. Any referee who cracks down on either of these things is seen as pernickety and as you say, "not letting the game flow" - yet if you went to congress with a motion to try and put this into the rule book, you'd be voted down by a 90% margin. It's like a trade off where the winners are the spectators who miss the days when the field was stained with blood after a match, but it's also a huge factor in the demise of some of the more subtle and crafty aspects of the game which used to be valued skills but are now nothing more than ornamental. If that's what people want, then we should be open about it and frame the rules correctly and go from there.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

Daleamar
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Daleamar »

Sharp Eye wrote:Not the First Time for this ref to be harsh on one team for steps and allow the other get away with illegal physical contact. Hope the young player who was seriously injured will gain a full recovery and that he will continue to hurl after this unforgivable incident.
Therein lies the major problem for me.... How can a ref be 'harsh' on steps? He's either over carried it or not. This is a rule where there is NO interpretation involved. Watch any game and especially 90% of goals scored, both hurling and football, the ball has been over carried.

Enforcing the steps is the only way to remove over zealous hits, as really, what is a defender to do otherwise? You time it so you're heading in on the attackers 3rd-4th step but the ball doesn't come out of the hand and what choice have you then. He's getting away with, you only have one option left.... break him up!

Edit* should have read the last post. But will leave it here anyway!

Sharp Eye
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Sharp Eye »

Just to clear any doubts about the incident, the player who got seriously injured did not over carry the ball. The lack of protection given by the referee suggests that the time has now come to introduce and implement the "Black Card" in hurling. Had the "Black Card" being in operation and if it was implemented the player responsible for the serious incident which occured would have been sitting in the dug-out following his first offence. The rules must be changed, if the existing rules or the interpretation of them does not give reasonable protection to our players.

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Lone Shark
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Re: The issue of letting the game flow

Post by Lone Shark »

Sharp Eye wrote:Just to clear any doubts about the incident, the player who got seriously injured did not over carry the ball. The lack of protection given by the referee suggests that the time has now come to introduce and implement the "Black Card" in hurling. Had the "Black Card" being in operation and if it was implemented the player responsible for the serious incident which occured would have been sitting in the dug-out following his first offence. The rules must be changed, if the existing rules or the interpretation of them does not give reasonable protection to our players.
Your last sentence is spot on, and I couldn't agree more with it. However if the situation transpired as was described above, the black card is not a meaningful sanction and hurling wouldn't benefit from it - for the same reason that I don't think football has benefited from the new rule. Late on in a match, with the result in the balance and where the option of a substitute is there, a black card doesn't really hurt a team that much so the defending side won't worry too much about that particular punishment. This is unlike early in matches when players will be much keener to look after themselves so that they can see out the bulk of the game. If a player was bearing down on goal and the choice was to let him run or bring him down, the same choice will be made as was done here.

The solution to this is straightforward, but it involves a couple of hard years of adjustment which no-one will want to make - years in which there are 80-90 frees per match, until attacking players stop overcarrying the ball and defenders stop dragging out of ball carriers as it's the only way to tackle a man who has the sliothar firmly in his paw and no intention of playing it until he breaks free.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

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