Black card has increased football scoring rate

In January, the GAA introduced the black card for cynical fouls in football. It has eliminated much of the pulling and dragging that blighted the game. Not counting replays or extra-time, the average score in games played in this year’s All-Ireland senior football championship is 35 points.

Last year it was 32 points per game. That is a year-on-year improvement of nearly 10%. Should the GAA keep the black card? Yes. The game has sped up, with an average of one point every two minutes.

It is now a much more enthralling spectacle and more enjoyable to play. The message to young people is that it is no longer cool to win ugly.