Rethink urged on ‘maor uisce’ ban after sweltering Sunday

GAA officials nationwide were united yesterday in their condemnation of regulations which have banned water carriers from entering the field of play.

Brought in at the start of this year’s National League, the issue took on added significance over the weekend when temperatures soared into the mid and high-20s from Belfast to Waterford.

Under the guidelines, players must make their way to the sidelines to take on water as ‘maor uisce’ are no longer allowed on the pitch. Throwing bottles onto the field has also been outlawed.

Cork manager Conor Counihan predicted prior to the NFL final against Mayo that it could become a major issue during summer.

Monaghan manager Seamus McEnaney revealed recently that some of his players had been ill with dehydration after matches while his Tyrone counterpart, Mickey Harte, said on Sunday the rules were “unacceptable”.

One county official has declared that he intends writing to his provincial council in protest at the measures while others have labelled it “a stupid rule”, “crazy” and “ridiculous”. All have asked that common sense be used in future.

One county secretary went as far as to say: “This is a player welfare issue. The temperatures we had at the weekend were the hottest we had in 12 months and players’ bodies just aren’t used to that.”

Thankfully, there were no reports of any player from the eight competing senior football sides suffering dehydration at any stage two days ago but there was a suspicion of a case on Saturday.

One minor Offaly footballer was taken to casualty in Tullamore General Hospital after a Leinster Championship game against Meath in Mullingar when he revealed that he felt unwell in the dressing room afterwards.

The player in question had been able to finish the game, which was played mid-afternoon and, while some officials feel dehydration was at least partially responsible, the youngster did also suffer an accidental head injury.

“We were trying to get water on to the pitch from the sidelines but it was just crazy,” said Tyrone official Damian Harvey of events in Casement Park the following afternoon. “You had players running 30-40 yards just to get water.

“I just don’t understand it. It was hugely frustrating and there were plenty of breaks in play when the normal rules that had been in place last year would have sufficed.”

Temperatures are expected to dip this week and last Sunday’s scorcher is unlikely to be repeated too often in the coming months but Antrim secretary Frankie Quinn still believes that the rule needs changing.

“Something has to be done on a day like we had for the game. It was 25-26 degrees out there and it has to be looked at. What harm can be done by throwing a few bottles onto a pitch?”

Adding to the frustration was the fact that different rules seemed to apply for different games and nowhere was that more apparent than in Portlaoise where Meath met Offaly and Louth faced Longford.

Referee Derek Fahy turned a blind eye to bottles being thrown onto the pitch as well as repeated incursions by water carriers in the first game while both sides adhered closely to the regulations during the second tie. A number of counties including Meath and Longford prepared for the conditions by having team doctors speak to their panels about the levels of hydration required in such circumstances.