New rules all set to come into play, Croker chiefs confirm

THE GAA yesterday confirmed the new playing rules for all games at club and county level.

The new regulations will be enforced for the first time on Saturday, May 15.

There are six changes specific to football and three to hurling. A further six changes impact on both codes after motions pertaining to those rules were passed at last month’s Congress in Newcastle, Co Down.

The football rules will see players having to use a definite underhand striking action when hand-passing the ball using the open hand; all penalty kicks will now be taken 11 metres from goal while all kickouts are to be taken from the 13-metre line.

Line balls must be kicked from outside the boundary line, it will be illegal for a charge to be made on a player kicking the ball and the bounce has been redefined so that the ‘basketball type bounce’ is not a foul.

The rules related specifically to hurling will see the handpass involving a definite striking action of the hand and for penalties, non-participating players must remain outside the 20 metre line and the arc until the ball is struck, while those in goal must not move off the line until the ball is struck.

Finally the penalty for taking a puck-out outside the small square, which generated huge controversy in the 2008 Munster U21 hurling final, has been changed from the awarding of a 65m free to a throw-in on the 20m line.

There are six new rules relating to both hurling and football. All throw-ins to restart play will have to be taken a minimum of 13 metres from the sideline, that a charge is now defined as ‘shoulder to shoulder’ rather than ‘side to side’ and the penalty for a player deliberately going outside the boundary lines to gain an advantage has been changed from a caution to a free. A referee will now signal that advantage is being played by raising his arm and extra-time will now consist of two 10-minute halves only, with the provision of two additional five-minute periods having been removed. Finally the new rule for restarting play outlines that if play is stopped by the referee to enable a seriously injured player to be treated, play will no wresume with a free to the team that had possession but they will not be permitted to score from such a free.