James Horan: Conor Lane rang me after Eoghan McLaughlin tackle

CONTROVERSIAL: Dublin's John Small with Eoghan McLaughlin of Mayo after the incident in the 2021 All-Ireland semi-final. Pic: INPHO/Tommy Dickson

After a weekend with several high-profile incidents, officiating in the GAA is once again a talking point.

In Sunday’s national league encounter at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Dublin’s Lee Gannon and Cork midfielder Ian Maguire were both sent off for second yellow cards. There were more disputed decisions in Cusack Park as Clare went down by a point against Kildare although Colm Collins was adamant that was not the reason for their defeat.

“To be brutally honest, the referee was not the cause of us losing that game. We lost that game ourselves. 100%.” 

Speaking on the Irish Examiner Gaelic football show, former Mayo player and manager James Horan spoke about the challenges facing officials currently.

“I don’t think the rule book is the issue with refereeing,” said Horan. “We have to accept there is going to be an error percentage. There just is. Where human beings are involved there is going to be mistakes.

“I think the environment around what refs are operating in is absolutely crazy. It is almost getting dangerous at some games. What refs are putting up with, the abuse they are getting, sometimes on the field, sometimes from crowds. It is escalating particularly at club level. I’d say as an association we are struggling for referees.

“Referees that are reffing, are they doing it with fear a little bit. Trying to keep a crowd at bay almost. They are human beings and can feel the pulse, the mood of the environment. That is a serious issue, the number of referees we are getting.” 

Famously, Horan’s Mayo side were on the receiving end of a particularly controversial call in the 2021 All-Ireland semi-final against Dublin when Eoghan McLaughlin suffered a double jaw fracture following a heavy hit from John Small.

Horan said he spoke to Conor Lane subsequently and understood his perspective.

“I’d a long chat with the ref a couple of days after that. We went through it. I completely see his side when he went through it.” He continued: “He did (ring.) He wanted to pass on his best wishes to the family and the player. He went through it which I thought was a great thing. I won’t go into the detail of what he did or didn’t, messages he did or didn’t receive. The impact it had on him as a person.

“If you remember that play, that ball should have ended up in the back of the net. That was right in my view. The tackle, everything. If that went in I don’t know how I would have reacted. But when he went through it there was so much happening, that game was all over the place.

“Refs have to depend on different things, different people, different information in a split second. I wouldn’t like to do it.“