February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
For the last month, a player receiving a yellow card was sent to the sideline for a period of 10 minutes. However, under a revamped version of the experimental rule, a player who receives a yellow will now be sent off for the remainder of the game, but he can be replaced.
In a choice between the original sin-bin system and the new proposal, the Council voted to change by 19 votes to 14.
“Some people felt that the sin bin given more time would have worked and they hadn’t seen enough of it,” GAA president Sean Kelly said. “Others were in favor of the sin bin with modifications. But at the end of the day we had to make a decision and we endorsed the new proposals.”
The sin bin in its original format had been roundly attacked by several intercounty coaches such as Sean Boylan of Meath and Longford’s Luke Dempsey, and it was also felt that it would be too difficult to implement at both club and colleges levels.
However, the new system which will see a player who receives a yellow card sent off and replaced by one of six substitutes may also prove contentious when the leagues start this weekend.
“Nobody ever said the experiments were perfect,” added Kelly, “that’s why we’re trying different things out to see which ones best fit with our aims of reducing fouling in our games. The more choices that are put before us, the better chance we have of making the right decision.”
Following last Sunday’s Walsh Cup hurling game against Dublin, Kilkenny manager Brian Cody was highly critical of the new yellow card measure.
“I had no idea what was happening or what was going to happen,” he said. “The referee did his best to explain things, so it’s not his fault, but basically they?re trying to take genuine man to man contact out of the game. They’re talking about hurling and trying to keep it alive, but this will kill it.”
Dublin’s Eoin Moran was the only player to be yellow-carded, sent off and replaced by a sub, but this still failed to pacify Cody.
“I think the whole thing is crazy,” he said. “Dublin had a lad sent for basically nothing; it was a genuine use of his body. The game will be dead in 12 months if we let that continue.”
Westmeath boss Tom Ryan weighed in by describing the new rule as a “total shambles” following his team’s Kehoe Cup defeat by Athlone IT.