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Hurling Referees Destroying Hurling

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The state of officiating in GAA generally is going down. Football has even more problems with this than hurling. You might not hear as much because they successfully gag football managers. Hurling managers seem to be stronger and more forcefull, (Exception ,Maybe Andy Mc Entee could be a hurling manager born in the wrong place).

Will get worse until the structure is changed to reflect speed of the modern game, Obvious matters to consider include VAR, 2nd ref with vantage point in communication with Linesman, enhanced role for linesmen and umpires, Insistence on consistently as in going by rules or changing them nationally, Anything that will help ref.

Ashrules (Dublin) - Posts: 518 - 05/03/2020 10:07:25    2272303

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Replying To Ashrules:  "The state of officiating in GAA generally is going down. Football has even more problems with this than hurling. You might not hear as much because they successfully gag football managers. Hurling managers seem to be stronger and more forcefull, (Exception ,Maybe Andy Mc Entee could be a hurling manager born in the wrong place).

Will get worse until the structure is changed to reflect speed of the modern game, Obvious matters to consider include VAR, 2nd ref with vantage point in communication with Linesman, enhanced role for linesmen and umpires, Insistence on consistently as in going by rules or changing them nationally, Anything that will help ref."
Is the standard gone down or is the analyse gone way up? Every fouls is replayed numerous times on T.V. It is shown in super slow motion. I maybe wrong but the Refs today are probably as good as they ever where but every mistake is harped on. I know there was a lot more off the ball nonsense going on in years gone past. However with the speed of the game, the distance a hurling ball goes and the style of play they do need help. The Umpire and Linesmen should all be qualified officials and be given the power to make calls.

gatha (Kilkenny) - Posts: 318 - 05/03/2020 12:02:12    2272321

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Both hurling and football in particular are constantly having rule changes introduced to how the game is played but little or nothing done and if anything made more difficult for referees.
None of the wise men coming up with these changes seem to want or understand how difficult it is to referee games while umpires and linesmen can do little or nothing to assist.

catch22 (USA) - Posts: 2148 - 05/03/2020 12:18:54    2272326

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Replying To gatha:  "Is the standard gone down or is the analyse gone way up? Every fouls is replayed numerous times on T.V. It is shown in super slow motion. I maybe wrong but the Refs today are probably as good as they ever where but every mistake is harped on. I know there was a lot more off the ball nonsense going on in years gone past. However with the speed of the game, the distance a hurling ball goes and the style of play they do need help. The Umpire and Linesmen should all be qualified officials and be given the power to make calls."
i agree with you entirely.
we now have a point where every decision of a referee is scrutinised to the nth degree.by assessors,media,managers.
and people wonder why we dont have good referees?seriously who would become a referee?

perfect10 (Wexford) - Posts: 3929 - 05/03/2020 13:31:44    2272342

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Replying To catch22:  "Both hurling and football in particular are constantly having rule changes introduced to how the game is played but little or nothing done and if anything made more difficult for referees.
None of the wise men coming up with these changes seem to want or understand how difficult it is to referee games while umpires and linesmen can do little or nothing to assist."
Would agree with you and gatha's. You have managers and current players who don't want anything changed but some will change their tune when not in these positions. The games and rules has consistently changes to meet changing times and circumstances. Other wise the game would be played with a stick like a hockey stick. 25 a side and would still be open season on goaltenders. O yes and what about those things they now wear on their heads. If you go to a training session there are more than two teams on the field and O my God there are another 35 people running up and down the side line.
Another poster on here said correctly that the GAA needs to ignore these managers and do what is required. To your point the referee is totally vulnerable with the rules and expectations of him in today's game. Gatha pointed out that every decision is analyzed, replayed and replayed again. Much more than the mistakes of the 30 players on the field.
However leave hurling alone, there is nothing wrong with it. I wonder if that was applied in the 1930's how the game would be today.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 05/03/2020 14:04:53    2272352

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Replying To midlands:  "I don't claim to know exactly what happened between Moran and Forde but I don't believe it would make any sense for Forde to initiate a physical battle with Moran, where there would be only one winner. Neither do I believe that Forde set out to get Moran sent off. If that was his intention he wouldn't have got back to his feet so quickly. And I hope you accept that he was back on his feet long before the red card appeared.

I agree that referees have a difficult job and in fact I thought Sean Stack did a good job for the first half hour last Sunday. After the Gleeson red card I thought he seemed to be a little bit rattled but in fairness he cannot be blamed for the other two red cards. Moran was dismissed on the evidence of a linesman who was very close to the incident, while Barrett was sent off on the evidence of an umpire who was almost 100 yards away. I certainly hope we haven't seen the last of Stack as a referee as I believe he can develop into a top-class official. Incidentally, I would value your opinion on your own county's referee named Walsh. I've only seen him twice but I was impressed. We need all the good officials we can get, and it's a pity that they get so much criticism from managers, analysts and anonymous commentators."
Sorry midlands for missing your question. I don't know much about Walsh but believe he is respected. That is the secret to having good refs, respect all around. For the most posters on here are to be commended for that. Some thought I was trying to defend Austin. The reality this is the third coach to try check him. Patience must be running thin.
You have good hurlers in Westmeath and need more resources to get to the next level. It was a pleasure to play with them in college. I always thought they were the stars of the team.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 06/03/2020 00:28:25    2272425

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It certainly look like Cahill is n to going to put up with Austin's nonsense. He is not even in the team panel.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 07/03/2020 15:29:04    2272614

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Replying To Canuck:  "It certainly look like Cahill is n to going to put up with Austin's nonsense. He is not even in the team panel."
I would say that I think he is a hurler with great potential, but I think it is still only potential. He had 1 great year and has (sadly) been poor since.

StoreysTash (Wexford) - Posts: 1732 - 07/03/2020 17:34:40    2272640

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Replying To StoreysTash:  "I would say that I think he is a hurler with great potential, but I think it is still only potential. He had 1 great year and has (sadly) been poor since."
There seems to be something missing in the cynic there. He may prove us wrong this year yet. Mid 20's now time is running out. His fitness is questioned but he said himself before Christmas training like hell. He got injured and that might have slowed him down. He was in the dog house today without any doubt. Reluctant to bash any player from any team.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 07/03/2020 19:36:57    2272665

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Replying To StoreysTash:  "I would say that I think he is a hurler with great potential, but I think it is still only potential. He had 1 great year and has (sadly) been poor since."
There seems to be something missing in the cynic there. He may prove us wrong this year yet. Mid 20's now time is running out. His fitness is questioned but he said himself before Christmas training like hell. He got injured and that might have slowed him down. He was in the dog house today without any doubt. Reluctant to bash any player from any team.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 07/03/2020 20:42:33    2272697

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Replying To Canuck:  "It certainly look like Cahill is n to going to put up with Austin's nonsense. He is not even in the team panel."
I'd say Cahill could be as ruthless as Cody. He won't care who he is. He's arguably the most talented player in the country but he's done that type of wild pull a few times and I'm still not sure he's a team player in the sense he still hits aimless shots. It'll be interesting to see where it goes because no team can afford to lose a player of his quality.

tiobraid (Tipperary) - Posts: 4119 - 07/03/2020 21:42:08    2272714

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Replying To tiobraid:  "I'd say Cahill could be as ruthless as Cody. He won't care who he is. He's arguably the most talented player in the country but he's done that type of wild pull a few times and I'm still not sure he's a team player in the sense he still hits aimless shots. It'll be interesting to see where it goes because no team can afford to lose a player of his quality."
From what I hear Liam Cahill is like that. Thankfully because that is what was needed.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 08/03/2020 00:29:29    2272736

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Replying To tiobraid:  "I'd say Cahill could be as ruthless as Cody. He won't care who he is. He's arguably the most talented player in the country but he's done that type of wild pull a few times and I'm still not sure he's a team player in the sense he still hits aimless shots. It'll be interesting to see where it goes because no team can afford to lose a player of his quality."
From what I hear Liam Cahill is like that. Thankfully because that is what was needed.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 08/03/2020 00:38:08    2272739

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33 frees awarded by Johnny Murphy today after the 50 in croke park 2 weeks ago

bostonredsox (Wexford) - Posts: 4368 - 08/03/2020 15:56:30    2272828

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Was at the Offaly game and all I can say is the standard of referring was shocking. 6 minutes flashed up for injury time the ref plays 8 and within the two magic extra minutes Antrim get two goals to put Offaly out of the final. Head high dangerous tackle in the second half was a yellow, throwing the ball in I don't know how many times into a group of players then having to stop the game again to through it in again. Very harsh on Offaly who in my mind were the better team.

ke40 (Kildare) - Posts: 209 - 08/03/2020 16:59:11    2272846

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Does it serve any purpose, improvement for the game or Offaly to have them operating in a lower tier of the game? I feel this relegating up and down on a yearly basis instead of a longer based result and performance analysis. It literally puts them back to square one and how hard is it to pick themselves up again. It always seems that when progress is made in any of the weaker counties there is some sort of a kick in the head to send them backwards again. You know like a punishment system rather than a reward one. Just some thoughts.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 08/03/2020 17:34:48    2272854

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Replying To ke40:  "Was at the Offaly game and all I can say is the standard of referring was shocking. 6 minutes flashed up for injury time the ref plays 8 and within the two magic extra minutes Antrim get two goals to put Offaly out of the final. Head high dangerous tackle in the second half was a yellow, throwing the ball in I don't know how many times into a group of players then having to stop the game again to through it in again. Very harsh on Offaly who in my mind were the better team."
Agreed. Frustrating and disappointing day for players and supporters. Some poor refereeing decisions throughout.

thelongridge (Offaly) - Posts: 1741 - 08/03/2020 17:45:30    2272856

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Have to give credit to Johnny Ryan today in the Galway Tipp game, let the game flow and allowed the physical hits that we love in hurling. He had a great game today.

ecad123 (Galway) - Posts: 272 - 08/03/2020 18:07:55    2272860

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Replying To Canuck:  "Does it serve any purpose, improvement for the game or Offaly to have them operating in a lower tier of the game? I feel this relegating up and down on a yearly basis instead of a longer based result and performance analysis. It literally puts them back to square one and how hard is it to pick themselves up again. It always seems that when progress is made in any of the weaker counties there is some sort of a kick in the head to send them backwards again. You know like a punishment system rather than a reward one. Just some thoughts."
I would tend to agree with this because if we look at it, it will be another two years again before Offaly get to play against top tier competition if they win the league next year! I would rather see two up two down like the football, it's to comfortable for the top 6-8 teams because realistically they will never be relegated if it's only one team going down every year! Laois/Carlow/Westmeath while they struggled in the top league the experience and exposure to the level is great for these teams and it's where every team wants to be. Would it be worth adding another team to 1A and 1B,

ke40 (Kildare) - Posts: 209 - 08/03/2020 18:49:33    2272866

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If you take a broader look at any game and not just your own obvious team desire you can see and learn a lot. 99% of what occurs is the result of player action not the referee. Saying that he does have influence on how things may go from game to game. Looking at Limerick and Waterford (not because we were involved) yesterday this was not a softy softy game but there seemed to ba mutual respect by the players and ref of each other. It seems that one incident in any game by one player or the ref can trend what is going to happen.
There are some frustrating aspects to the game now. Like the rucking. An uneven number of players may arise at the ball together. That can not be avoided. However six more arrive that can be avoiding by penalizing anymore entrance to that ruck. Then the ref blows it up turns around quick and throws the ball 9 times out of 10 to the advantage of one team. This throw in is some what similar to the face off in hockey but the face off has to be and is fair to both teams. So important in a possession game. However the purist will say leave hurling alone. It is perfect. A wise person once said do what you did yesterday and you will fail. Do what you are doing today and you will fail. Do what you need to do for tomorrow you will grow and prosper.

Canuck (Waterford) - Posts: 2660 - 08/03/2020 18:53:45    2272868

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