Refs need more time – not grief
No, we refer to the preposterous call in one newspaper over the weekend to sideline Coldrick from all big games for the remainder of the season based on his error in Omagh.
The writer in question unfairly highlighted Coldrick as “a media darling” and said he should be punished for the Conor Maginn misjudgement as well as the decision to provide Tyrone with what turned out to be their equalising free. Interestingly, that’s not something Down have made an issue of themselves.
Based on that logic — and we used that word ever so loosely — McQuillan, after his two mistakes in Celtic Park, should also be consigned to manning the sidelines with flag in hand or taking charge of lowly qualifiers. His faux pas were, of course, failing to show Patsy Bradley an early black card and then a red card to James Kielt for a black card offence following a bookable one.
At that rate, there will be only the bones of a championship panel to pick from by the end of July. But it proves exactly just how out of hand some of the reaction has been to referees’ difficulties with operating the black card.
That’s not to say there isn’t a concern. Coldrick’s case, as we have discovered on Sunday, wasn’t an isolated one. When the best officials are still coming to terms with the new rules it sends out a crystal clear signal that all is not right. So who is to blame? Or has anyone at all been derelict in their duties? As much as we want answers, the easy ride referees had with the black card in the National League wasn’t going to extend to the championship. And yet the culture shock has obviously left them reeling.
The problem is not that they are showing black cards incorrectly but incorrectly not showing them. On Saturday in Newry, Cormac Reilly may have handed out a couple had his linesmen provided him with information of what was happening directly in front of them. Although hardly proven, it had been the belief of many observers that referees across the spring were on message not to overdo it with black cards to ensure the rule had a smooth baptism. In a number of situations, yellows were handed out as some sort of compromise punishment.
With more games on TV now, the scrutiny of referees has increased almost at the same rate as the intensity of play from league to championship.
They should have been — and likely were — braced for that by their authorities but something has gone awry.
In last week’s Forum, we mentioned the extra work that the black cardentails. Just put yourself in their boots for a moment and imagine the catalogue of fouls they must be au fait with. Ensuring they have a clear view of incidents. Then the arduous task in determining what is and isn’t a deliberate foul. And don’t forget the ever-growing number of players attempting to dupe them into giving frees and showing cards.
It’s a battle referees are facing with the black card, not a struggle. Yes, even after five months, what they need is more time and less of the idiocy.
* Email: john.fogarty@examiner.ie
Here’s a stat to keep in mind for the rest of the Championship: in five of the eight football games these past two weekends, the side that made the most positional changes to the named team has lost.
At the weekend, Derry, London and Down made more alterations than their opponents and were beaten. The previous Sunday, Tyrone orchestrated more positional swaps than Down in their drawn game.
Then again, both Donegal and Tyrone, at the second time of asking, made more personnel switches and won.
These points are made to illustrate an issue that we have touched on before: the decline in value of match programmes and team announcements as a source of credible information.
In the eight games, there were 15 player changes. That’s a relatively low figure and one accustomed to Championship, where there isn’t as much hoodwinking on naming sides.
But it’s position-wise where there is the most upheaval. Across the eight games, there were 224 outfield starting positions. Over a quarter, 61, were filled by players not stationed where they were selected.
Leitrim, for example, had 12 of their total 14 outfield players in roles alien to the position accustomed to their jersey number. It goes without saying that it’s a manager’s prerogative to do just that but in Leitrim’s case it hardly served them well.
Nor supporters who have learned not to place too much or any store in a jersey number other than a means of identifying a player. GAA director general Páraic Duffy has aired his annoyance with the sham that team announcements have become — but how much authority does he wield in this area?
On Sunday, Jim McGuinness did a Jim Gavin and said nothing to convince RTÉ in a pre-match interview that Neil Gallagher wouldn’t start. Gavin, just prior to the league game against Tyrone last month, told TG4 Bernard Brogan would be in the team when in fact the forward saw no action at all. Managers, if they had their way, wouldn’t tell us the day of a game, never mind the throw-in time. On that count, they can’t be beaten. Fines for late team releases (they’re supposed to be issued on Wednesdays)? Collateral damage.
It’s time to end the charade. Issue squad numbers and be done with the blasted thing.
Cork’s decision to postpone their senior hurlers’ club championship games this weekend can’t have been easy.
Going ahead with the games ran the risk of players picking up injuries a week ahead of Sunday week’sreplay against Waterford.
Their clubs would also have been entitled to see some of their men this week, which would have interrupted Jimmy Barry-Murphy’s preparations.
The decision will cause plenty of anger among the clubs, who have had this weekend circled in thecalendar for months now.
Righteous anger, you might say, but whether the county board did something or didn’t, they were going to be faced with a player welfare issue. A lose-lose situation if ever there was one.
