GAA managers back sin-bin plan

THE age profile of referees is one of the biggest problems facing GAA leaders, legendary manager Mick O’Dwyer believes. He has urged the Association to go into colleges and universities in an attempt to recruit younger officials.

The Laois manager believes with the pace of the game, Gaelic football referees need to be younger: “The GAA should be going after younger people, those who are interested in the game but maybe aren’t good enough to play it at the top level. They should be getting these young people in and providing them with training, because the game has got so much quicker, we need younger referees.”

O’Dwyer was making his comments at a special high powered GAA forum in Portlaoise where there was widespread support among a number of managers for the introduction of a sin-bin, possibly in next season’s secondary provincial competitions.