Punishing Nash for success

At the height of the often bitter Galway-Tipperary rivalry in the late 1980s, Nicky English’s free-taking technique was a bone of contention for many in the west.

It was decried by rival supporters that he balanced the ball too long on his hurley. Phone-calls were made to The Sunday Game, letters written to newspapers. Twitter, were it in existence back then, would have trended the bejaysus out of it.

In the following decade, DJ Carey’s similar style was also derided yet neither player were breaking any rules. Thousands of points were scored by their variations on the roll and lift. Croke Park didn’t bat an eyelid.