Ref rules the roost in Galway victory
But the major talking-point afterwards wasn’t about the hurling. Nearly 40 frees, eight yellow cards, three red cards (one straight red), three penalties — sounds like we witnessed a civil war between these two neighbouring counties when in fact there wasn’t a single incident of real venom.
Yet that was the sum of the damage done by the new, more strict enforcement of the rules as applied by referee, Seamus Roche.
Oh, there was hurling alright, but any chance there was of a close encounter ended after just three minutes, when Clare wing-forward David Barrett, one of four league debutants in the Clare forward sextet, was sent to the line, straight red for what seemed a very innocuous pull during an off-the-ball jostle for position.
It was a point apiece at that stage, but on such a big, open pitch, the extra man was always going to tell.
With Ger Farragher hitting several superb long-range frees into the firm breeze, full-forward Iarla Tannian notching a superb hat-trick of points and corner-forward Aongus Callanan adding 1-1; Galway had a commanding 1-13 to 0-7 lead by the break and with the advantage of the breeze to come, were home free.
Six minutes after the restart the teams were back on level terms, but only in playing numbers. This time it was Galway full-back Tony Óg Regan who fell foul of the new, stricter rule interpretations, picking up a second yellow card for what would barely have merited a free last season.
By that stage, however, Galway had extended their lead to 13 points, Farragher with Galway’s second goal from a 20m free, having blasted over the bar a minute earlier from a penalty. Credit to Clare, they made a match of it thereafter, even managed to put a bit of gloss on the final scoreline with a strong finish after Galway centre-back John Lee also saw red. A gloss is all it was, however — a veneer.
Afterwards, neither manager was very happy with the new attitude to the rules. “We got a briefing from Croke Park a fortnight ago but I’m not sure I know the rules anymore,” said a clearly perplexed Mike McNamara, the new Clare supremo.
“Anyone who went near the ball today, there seemed to be some kind of free. The referees will have to sit down with management and players and see how can we play this game without blowing the whistle. Conditions may dictate a little but we have to allow some freedom of expression in the game.”
While Galway ended up with two red cards it was Clare who really suffered most, the early sending-off of Barrett costing them dearly. Galway wing-back Ger Mahon went down initially but was soon back on his feet, clearly not wishing to see Barrett sent off. However after consulting with his linesman and his two umpires, Roche — an experienced and highly-respected hurling referee — had no hesitation in brandishing red. “It had a massive bearing on the game,” said Mike Mac.
“We’ll have to get some other kind of system in place rather than having the referee storming around the place to see if someone saw something. If the ref doesn’t see an incident then surely common sense comes into play? If there was a sending-off offence I have no problem with it but it wasn’t and it destroyed the game as a spectacle. It destroyed the game particularly for a new team, and destroyed the game for a new player.”
Galway manager Ger Loughnane, however, had sympathy for the man in the middle. “They’re under fierce pressure, there’s no doubt about that. I thought Seamus Roche applied the rules as they are now; it’s not Seamus, nor any other referee, it’s the people who are making those rules. It’s going to destroy the game completely if this keeps going, there’ll be no physical contact allowed whatsoever. The problem is that you can do anything with your body but any little tap with a hurley and you get a yellow card, and when you’ve got one, it’s very easy to get a second. Seamus did nothing wrong, he has a fella up in the stand assessing him, he has to try not to lose any points, he doesn’t want any deductions.
“But this always happens in the league; it starts out like this but as it goes along it thaws out and by the time the Championship comes around, it’s anything goes. I think it will be the same this year.”
Perhaps Loughnane is right. But maybe it would be better if the players were to learn that rules are there to be implemented, and that in future any attempt to move the ball forward for a free will be punished with a throw-in (as happened to Clare’s Phillip Brennan), that any attempt to gain unfair advantage with an illegal lift for a free will be similarly punished (as with Flaherty), and that all unfair contact with a hurley will be punished with a card (as happened in all three dismissals).
Scorers for Galway: G. Farragher 1-11 (1-7 frees, 0-1 pen); A. Callanan 1-2; I. Tannian 0-5; N. Healy 0-3; A. Cullinane 0-2; K. Hynes 0-1.
Clare: M. Flaherty 3-8 (1-8 frees, 1-0 pen); N. Gilligan 0-3; D. O’Rourke 0-3; J. Clancy 0-2; G. Quinn 0-1 (free).
J. Skehill; D. Joyce, T. Og Regan, A. Gaynor; G. Mahon, J. Lee, A. Keary; A. Cullinane, K. Hayes; N. Healy, D. Forde, A. Kerins (c); G. Farragher, I. Tannian, A. Callanan.
Subs: C. Dervan (Mahon inj. 29); K. Wade (Kerins inj. 57; F. Coone (Healy inj. 70).
P. Brennan; T. Keogh, F. Lohan, C. McMahon; D. Clancy, G. Quinn, B. Bugler; B. O’Connell, J. Clancy; D. Barrett, C. Lafferty, D. O’Rourke; M. Flaherty, N. Gilligan, G. Arthur.
Subs: P. Donlan (Bugler inj. 13); F. Lynch (Lafferty 30); C. Plunkett (McMahon inj. 40); B. Nugent (Arthur 65; M. Murphy (Keogh 68).
S. Roche (Tipperary).
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