Appointment policy under scrutiny as referee who failed fitness test assigned championship fixture

LOST INTEGRITY?  General view of a referee jersey. Pic: ©INPHO/Cathal Noonan

The GAA referees appointments policy has come under scrutiny after a match official who failed a fitness test has been assigned an opening provincial football championship game this weekend.

The referee in question has not been replaced and is due to take charge of the fixture. However, he is unlikely to referee any further SFC games as those who do not pass the pre-championship fitness test are no longer given the opportunity to retake the examination.

The decision to allow him to go ahead and officiate the game has raised concerns about the integrity of the process.

It has been the case that to referee a championship game, a referee must achieve a 17.6 mark in the bleep test having first obtained a 16.8 level prior to the start of the Allianz Leagues.

It is understood another match official who was active during the Allianz League also failed the recent fitness test and won’t be refereeing any championship games. However, both men are included in the 24-man senior championship football referees panel released today.

The bleep test has come in for criticism from current and former referees such as Fergal Horgan and Brian Gavin. Speaking to the Irish Examiner hurling podcast in 2020, Tipperary man Horgan said: "I don’t think we should be losing anyone because of it. We should be trying to get these boys over the line on it.

“When Brian Gavin was refereeing, Brian will tell you himself he found it hard to get over the line on the fitness. But was he able to referee, by God was he able. He was gone at 40, same age as I am today. Could we have done with Brian over the last three years? Absolutely."

Roscommon’s Paddy Neilan has been ruled out for the championship due to injury.

Senior football championship referees: James Molloy (Galway); Jerome Henry (Mayo); Liam Devenney (Mayo); John Gilmartin (Sligo); Barry Judge (Sligo); Fergal Kelly (Longford); David Coldrick (Meath); David Gough (Meath); Barry Tiernan (Dublin); Brendan Cawley (Kildare); Anthony Nolan (Wicklow); Seamus Mulhare (Laois); Brendan Griffin (Kerry); Conor Lane (Cork); Derek O’Mahoney (Tipperary); Seán Lonergan (Tipperary); Joe McQuillan (Cavan); Noel Mooney (Cavan); Conor Dourneen (Cavan); Paul Faloon (Down); Barry Cassidy (Derry); Niall Cullen (Fermanagh); Martin McNally (Monaghan); Seán Hurson (Tyrone).

Senior hurling championship referees: Liam Gordon (Galway); Shane Hynes (Galway); Seán Stack (Dublin); Chris Mooney (Dublin) Paud O’Dwyer (Carlow); John Keenan (Wicklow); James Owens (Wexford); Colm Lyons (Cork); Johnny Murphy (Limerick); Thomas Walsh (Waterford); Fergal Horgan (Tipperary); Michael Kennedy (Tipperary).