Club ref on the new rules: Dissent nearly gone, three-up tough, and we're running twice as far

Policing something like the three-man up rule is hard when you don’t have eyes at the back of your head.

TOUGH TRACKING: Tadhg O Corcora, Cill na Martra tracks Stephen Sherlock of St. Finbarrs in the McCarthy Insurance Division 1 Football League at Cill na Martra. Pic: Jim Coughlan.

There was no hooter, but there was plenty of hooting from the stand in Cill na Martra as the home side took on St Finbarr’s in the opening round in Division 1 of the McCarthy Insurance CFL on Sunday morning.

The Barrs were 2-15 to 2-10 to the good, there were 15 minutes to go, the ball was deep in the Barrs’ half but the Cill na Martra faithful noticed that their visitors from the city had committed the cardinal sin of leaving only two players in their own half. A cacophony of hooting and hollering brought the indiscretion to the referee’s attention and Jason MacCárthaigh duly nailed the free from outside the arc to make it a three-point game. The following kickout didn’t go beyond the arc, MacCárthaigh was on target again and the lead was back to two. Perhaps one of the biggest impacts of the FRC’s new template will be wild swings in momentum.