Brian Gavin: David Gough made right calls and contributed to Clones epic

John Keenan was kept on his toes in an ugly Munster hurling game in Thurles on Saturday, meanwhile.

MAN IN THE MIDDLE: Derry captain Conor Glass and Armagh skipper Rian O'Neill with referee David Gough in Clones. Picture: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

After a few weeks of dramatic hurling, focus turned to Clones on Sunday where there was a pulsating finish to the Ulster final.

The only provincial final with any drama, it’s a testament to David Gough that he was able to contribute to the spectacle. He may not have been helped by either team not changing jersey – Kerry and Mayo are wearing their alternate kit next Saturday – but he was excellent.

With Gough, it seems the bigger the game he is, the better he performs. He and his team hardly put a foot wrong. They noticed a lot of the off-the-ball stuff and he was right with nearly every decision.

Working with his umpires, he booked Aaron McKay for twisting Shane McGuigan’s fingers. It was the correct call. Had one of McGuigan’s fingers been broken, David would have been entitled to red card McKay for inflicting injury recklessly to an opponent but the Derry forward was able to play on.

Other bookings for Rian O’Neill, Aidan Forker and Ross McQuillan were on the money as was the black card for Brendan Rogers close to the end of normal time. It really is a strange one that Derry would have been able to start extra-time with 15 had Rogers been sent off but had to do without him for most of that first 10 minutes as he served the remainder of his time in the sin bin. That carrying of cards into those periods is an anomaly the GAA have to look at.

A lot of county board officials were talking to David and his team before extra-time and penalties probably to get clarity on things but it just shows how unfamiliar counties can be with these situations. 

A penalty shootout is a hard way to lose a game never mind a final but the way the season is so condensed the GAA have little choice but to do it.

Compared to David, Conor Lane had a relaxed day in Croke Park where Dublin had it too easy but John Keenan was kept on his toes in an ugly game in Thurles on Saturday. This wasn’t like the John Keenan of last year’s epic Munster final where he let a lot go. Here, he was calling frees and good ones too.

Calum Lyons can have no complaints about his two yellow cards. He shouldn’t have reacted to David Fitzgerald’s elbow on Conor Prunty and he was loose with his hurl on Mark Rodgers later in the first half. Spotting Jamie Barron being fouled by Shane O’Donnell as Clare had a goal chance was a sharp call and one John wouldn’t have made last year.

Whether he has changed his approach or been told to, the fact is John didn’t get a game after that Munster final. If he gets the balance right between what he did last June and on Saturday he will be in contention for the business end of the championship.

Two Munster-born referees have been assigned to this Sunday’s vital games in Ennis and Thurles; Limerick’s Johnny Murphy taking the Clare-Cork one and Clare’s Seán Stack, now of Dublin, officiating Tipperary-Limerick. Leinster referees might have been the better choices considering the men’s counties are involved in the battle for the three top spots in Munster.

Of course, that’s not to say they won’t do their best – no matter what game or who is playing, referees want to give their all – but it’s a difficult situation for them. However, Leinster referees have been out the last two weeks and the pool of elite hurling match officials is incredibly small.

I sure hope there is better officiating of the square ball than in recent weeks. It raised its head against during the week in the Offaly-Dublin U20 Leinster semi-final. You simply cannot be in that area until the ball has arrived but referees are missing it. It isn’t like football where you don’t have to wait as long.

That’s one of the rules we as referees in Offaly are hoping to explain to club managers, chairpersons and secretaries in meetings next month. There is a clear gap between what it is understood by those competing and what is the reality. We feel it’s a worthwhile thing to do and I hope Croke Park show the same initiative.