Football Review Committee struggles to assess new rules as teams withhold GPS data

Football Review Committee chair Jim Gavin says rule changes can’t be fully assessed as counties refuse to share GPS data

ROYAL APPOINTMENT: GAA Football Review Committee chairperson Jim Gavin watching Meath v Westmeath at the weekend in Navan. Pic: Shauna Clinton/Sportsfile

The Football Review Committee are unable to assess the physical demands of the new rules because teams are not sharing their data, according to chairperson Jim Gavin.

Before the league, Gavin announced that their assessment of the new rules would require GPS readings from each county. The data would be anonymised and FRC members would sign Non-Disclosure Agreements.

A Games Intelligence Unit was established to monitor performance analysis metrics like kicking, handpassing and kickouts. They have published two reports so far.

“On the physical demands, the association has partnered up with the Dublin City University Department of Health,” said Gavin, speaking on RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland.

“We'll all be familiar with Professor Niall Moyna and Professor Mark Roantree in the faculty of computing and in particular for data analytics, and what they are looking at is the physical demands of players.

“What we have heard is that there are more physical demands on players, but we haven't seen the data yet because teams are not sharing the data.

“That research is ongoing, until we get the data, which will be anonymised, I don't need to know who the counties are, but until we have the data, we can't make any assessment of the physical.” 

Donegal manager Jim McGuinness said last weekend that some changes are “coming at a cost to players.” He pointed to the number of recent soft tissue injuries.

The Football Review Committee met on Monday night for their 50th meeting. They reviewed the opening five rounds of the National Football League. Gavin would not reveal what changes they have made but said they have taken the recent criticism from intercounty managers on board.

“The first I would say is we really welcome all the engagement. Over the last year, we had over 7,000 responses to a survey. We have got 1,200 people on a longitudinal survey currently, an ongoing, reiterative process. We have feedback from intercounty managers, a GPA submission in recent days from Colm Begley. Club managers have given us feedback. It is all welcomed. It is all different perspectives. In general, people like what they see.

“Yes, we have heard from county managers, they represent two percent of our game in the association, but they are a very important stakeholder. They get a shop window in 26 weeks of the year, so it is very important to listen to them.” 

The FRC report their recommendations to the Standing Committee on Playing Rules. That will progress to Central Council, who met on Thursday, to vote on any proposals.

“We have listened to all of that, I believe if the Standing Committee on Playing Rules and the Coiste Bainistí push those recommendations on, people will see we have listened.” Gavin was asked about Meath manager Robbie Brennan’s comment that “it is a joke” and no longer Gaelic football.

“We welcome all feedback. Any change of management, you have a bell curve. You've got people who are leading it, who are innovators and you've got people who are laggards. There are people in society, that is the general… So the early adopters, we can see already those teams who are thriving in this particular space, but we take all feedback on board.”