Rule here to stay, warns GAA chief Duffy

CALLS for the GAA to abandon the new handpass rule were met with a firm and unequivocal response by the association’s Director General yesterday.

The rule, Páraic Duffy has declared, is here to stay.

Introduced at last month’s Congress, the tweaked handpass stipulation cannot be touched until 2015 as, under the GAA’s own guidelines, playing rule changes can only be dealt with every five years.

“The motion was passed by Congress and it is very straightforward,” said Duffy who was annoyed at the escalating hostile reaction to a rule after the football championship’s first weekend.

“There will be no rowing back. If teams want referees to go and explain the rules I am quite happy to keep doing that until the penny drops but the rules were approved by Congress and will remain there.”

Managers in all three championships venues last Sunday cried foul over a rule that states that the handpass must be performed with a closed fist or else with a clear underhand motion by the open palm.

Asked whether some managers had lamented such rule changes down the years in the hope of deflecting criticism from themselves, Duffy replied by saying: “Well, I think you have answered your question.”

He continued: “The rule was changed at Congress four weeks ago. Every county, every club in the country were written to directly. Leading officials were written to. Last week we sent six of our elite inter-county referees to meet the six teams who were playing. The rule is as simple as can be. You can strike the ball with the closed fist or you can strike the ball underhand provided there’s a clear striking action.”

The GAA also dispatched their national match officials manager, Pat Doherty, to RTÉ in Donnybrook last week where the Westmeath man met with the station’s commentators and analysts to explain the rule.

“Every query that they had was answered so I don’t see what the problem should be,” said Duffy.

The 18 referees chosen to take charge of championship fixtures this summer were briefed on various matters, including the new rule, at a seminar in Croke Park over two days the week before.

Given all that, Duffy was clearly bemused at the reaction to what he believes is a straightforward change and he drew on his own experiences at two very different matches over the weekend to prove his point.

Having attended the Derry-Armagh game in Celtic Park, Duffy watched a club fixture in his native Monaghan where, after an initially confusing 15 minute period, players adapted seamlessly to the new rules.

Events on Foyleside go some way to supporting the Ard Stiurthoir’s argument. Though Derry were penalised over and over again for illegal hand passes, Armagh were rarely caught for the same offence.

However, club players are not playing matches under the guise of a third different hand pass rule in the space of less than 12 months, as is the case with their inter-county counterparts.

Last year’s league and championship were played under the old guidelines but a new set of experimental rules were used during the NFL before they were rejected at Congress and binned.

The current hand pass legislation was voted on at the GAA’s AGM last month in Newcastle, Co. Down and only four weeks have passed since that assembly and the rules introduction.

Duffy defended the right of clubs, counties and provinces to bring any motions they saw fit to the annual gathering but admitted that the GAA may have to examine how it introduces new playing rules in future.

That playing rules can be altered only a month before the championship without having ever been tested on the field of play is clearly not best practise and changes seem inevitable.