Kelly’s fearless goal-line charges lead to player safety issue

A serious issue that has arisen after the drawn All-Ireland SHC final between Clare and Cork is the safety of those on the goal-line facing a close in free or penalty.

Cork keeper Anthony Nash has perfected the skill of throwing the ball extra high, thus gaining extra metres after he has lifted the ball and before he strikes.

In one outstanding instance against Clare he was on the 13m when making contact with the ball from a 20m free, while Clare keeper Pa Kelly — having rushed off his line once Nash lifted the ball — was by then a mere 6m away.

The ball hit him on the hip and thankfully, no serious damage was done. But what if it had him in a vulnerable area, what if Kelly had been seriously injured? And with the power of the Nash shot that is a very real possibility.

Ahead of Saturday’s replay in Croke Park (5pm), Kelly addressed that issue but first, his decision to charge down Nash’s shot. “I’ve a strong opinion on that. Once the person taking the free touches the ball the goalie should be allowed attack. I started my run on the line and I don’t see any reason why I can’t attack the ball and block it with my body. It’s in play. Would I do it again the next day? Who knows? It’s a grey area.”

Rule 2.2, which covers ordinary frees, states: ‘All players, except the player taking the free puck (excluding penalties), shall be 20m from where the free puck is being taken.’

Rule 4.16 (b), which specifically covers penalties, states: ‘For any of the three players defending a penalty on the goal-line to move nearer than 20m to the ball before the penalty puck is taken…’

The question though is when and where is the free/penalty ‘taken’?

Is it, as Kelly claims, when the ball is first touched, in which case he is perfectly entitled to then charge from his line, or is it when the ball is actually struck, in which case, other than the three players on the line simultaneously retreating (through the net) the exact same distance as the free-taker has thrown the ball forward, it is technically impossible for them to remain 20m from the ball.

Rules 4.11 (a) ‘For a player on the team awarded a free puck to stand or move nearer than 20m to the ball before it is struck’ and 4.17 (a) ‘For an opposing player to be nearer than 20m to the ball before a free puck is struck’ are very specific — it’s when the ball is struck. But which rule takes precedence?

To add even more confusion, there’s Rule 4.25: ‘To advance the ball deliberately from the place at which a free puck is to be taken — penalty for the above foul, (i) Cancel free puck; (ii) Throw in the ball where the foul occurred, except as provided under exception (v) of Rule 2.2!

Can anyone argue that in almost all free-taking situations, now and historically, the ball is indeed advanced, thrown forward with the jab-lift, thus is almost never struck from the spot on which it was awarded.

Meanwhile, Kelly is prepared to face another possible Nash missile on Saturday.

He said: “The first thing is, you have to set up your two defenders and make sure they’re in the right positions. You’re probably doing a bit of trash talk or whatever. You’re trying to read where he’s going to hit it, read his pick-up. There’s an element of studying him, looking at tapes and seeing where he hits the ball. But with him, a lot of it is luck. It’s more hope the ball is going to hit off you because he has such a ferocious shot.

“Do goalies need some protection? That’s an issue that has to be dealt with. If the ball hits you in certain areas it could seriously hurt you. I’d say the powers-that-be will look at it at the end of the year.”