Call for linesmen to have a bigger say

FR SEAMUS GARDINER of the National Referees' Committee has called for more powers to be given to inter-county linesmen, arguing that they are not being used to their full potential.

Fr. Gardiner was speaking following recent instances of over-carrying in the Munster SHC games between Limerick and Tipperary, pointing out that calls for improvement in standards among umpires and linesmen were not that easy to implement.

"As things stand we have control over the linesmen and referees, but not over the umpires. All referees have their own umpires and they are adamant that this is better, that they develop teamwork and understanding over the years. There is a section on the umpires in the assessment forms for all referees and there have been cases where individuals have been told that unless there is an improvement in their umpires, it would affect future appointments. However, there has never been a specific instruction that a certain individual has to be replaced.