Martin Fogarty knows Brian Cody's imminent return will banish him into the stands.

The Kilkenny selector has patrolled the sideline effectively - alongside co-selector Michael Dempsey - as the Cats marched to the NHL title in the absence of legendary team boss Cody (who missed the latter stages of the campaign due to cardiac surgery).

However, once the manager is fit to resume his role, Fogarty will no longer be directly involved on match day due to the GAA's controversial new sideline rules:

"The boss will be back, which means I will be back behind the wire unless someone in Croke Park now gets a bit of common sense and changes these match-day regulations," Fogarty says in The Irish Examiner.

"It's a pity because it is doing a disrespect to selectors that people are worried that they would be starting fights on the line. I would be more concerned and worried about player welfare.

"The new regulations are basically banning players from getting water: you have two stations and if you go on the field with water there is a fine. The same two lads has to look after maybe 20 hurls and today our lads were strapped because two hurls broke at the clash. I would hope that the people in charge would see that the game of hurling needs four lads on the line and let's just see what happens." Tweet

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