The new time-keeping system which will be used in next year's championship won't allow for deliberate time-wasting or for time lost during the introduction of substitutes.

While Central Council recently decided that the clock will be stopped for injuries or other special circumstances only, referees won't have the authority to add on additional time for deliberate time-wasting, which is a bug-bearer of many GAA supporters.

It is a major loophole in the new clock/hooter system which will almost certainly be exploited by teams. The existing penalty for time-wasting on kick-outs / puck-outs, which is a throw-in on the defending 20-metre line, will continue to apply. However, the time wasted cannot be added on.

"The clock will be stopped for injuries or any other delay that the referee decides is necessary but under the rules as they stand the punishment for wasting time on a kick-out or free is a throw-in, not time added on at the end," the GAA's Head of Games in Croke Park Fergal McGill explained to the Irish Independent.

The clock/hooter will debut in the Sigerson and Fitzgibbon Cups, after which the GAA will draw up precise protocols for the championships. However, they cannot make any changes which require a rule change.

"Central Council will look at what needs to be addressed after Sigerson and Fitzgibbon and take it from there," McGill added. Tweet

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