On the 20th anniversary of Dubliner Jim Stynes’ retirement from the AFL, Jack Anderson looks back at a remarkable career.

The NFL season begins tonight as the defending Super Bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles, host the Atlanta Falcons, writes Jack Anderson.

Once when asked to describe jazz, the famous pianist Thomas Fats Waller replied, “if you don’t know by now, don’t mess with it”. The quote is both sanitised — a four-letter word other than mess was used — and often misattributed (to Louis Armstrong).

Should criminal law be used more often to police serious incidents of violence during a game at whatever level of sport it occurs? Or should these matters be left to sport itself and thus not waste precious police and public resources?

When first asked to write a column for this paper, the esteemed sports editor gave me three guidelines: Write clearly; be informative; and stay impartial, writes Jack Anderson 

Being in Ireland for July, I got to see some hurling and follow Limerick as they marched into the All-Ireland. Reading the programme for the Limerick v Kilkenny All-Ireland, one page stood out. It was a full page on a GAA campaign called “Reduce the Odds”.

Last week, the head of Fifa’s referee committee, Pierluigi Collina claimed that 99.3% of “match-changing” decisions have been, thanks to the newly introduced Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system, called correctly at the World Cup.

The dispute between Kildare and the GAA’s Central Competitions Control Committee (CCCC) regarding the venue for their round 3 qualifier fixture against Mayo has been resolved.

Over the next number of weeks, the emphasis in the GAA championships moves to football. Galway’s victory in the Connacht final on Sunday against Roscommon means they are the first team to, coin a phrase, be “safe in the [Super] 8”.

The GAA championships in both hurling and football have reached a crucial stage.