GAA CONGRESS:SATURDAY'S GAA congress, showcasing the introduction of electronic voting, ended with a couple of serious setbacks for the top table with two unexpected motions being passed late in the afternoon.
One, the reversal of the rule providing for extra time in early championship matches, has the potential to create a fixtures headache in next year’s championship.
But the second, removing the power to review inadequately punished red-card offences, represents a significant rolling back of the disciplinary process.
It wasn’t, however, all bad news, as congress also passed the motion to switch, for a one-year trial, from time-based suspensions to match bans.
Most significantly, it also allowed the establishment of a standing committee to monitor the playing rules of football and hurling with the power to bring forward proposed changes deemed necessary after consultation with Central Council.
This relaxes the rigid, five-year rule which until now has restricted consideration of playing rule changes to congresses in years ending in -0 and -5.
Director general Páraic Duffy took the positives from the day’s debates. “There were two very important decisions taken at congress. One was the match bans – that’s a huge thing and a huge change in culture in the GAA.
“The second one is the setting up of a standing committee in relation to the rules. It took us by surprise at the end because we weren’t sure it was going to get through. There were motions trying to go in the opposite direction. The fact that those motions were defeated, on the one hand, and we set up a standing committee to review rules, on the other, is very positive.”
It was also decided to extend the season in Division One of the football and hurling leagues to re-introduce semi-finals.
Speaking later, GAA president Christy Cooney explained why he had intervened on the question of restoring replays in the early rounds of the provincial championships.
“It would have been completely hypocritical of me if I did not say what I said, after what I said in my congress address,” he said. “We don’t need any more intercounty games than we already have, we would be extremely concerned at the impact it will have on club championships.
“We are making progress with our fixture planners and fixture makers and we would hope that this would not impact on it a serious way, and that is the last thing that we would want.
“That is why I spoke on it. Normally, I don’t speak on motions to any great extent but that is why I spoke on it today.
“I personally believe it is the wrong decision, but congress has made the decision.”
The motion to discontinue the practice of asking referees to reconsider incidents in which they showed yellow cards to players who had committed red-card infractions was piloted through by former intercounty referee John Bannnon from Longford, who described such a referral after his last match (when he yellow-carded Cork’s John Miskella for a “striking” offence in the 2009 All-Ireland semi-final) as “his most difficult time” as a referee.
“I was being asked to decide on my laptop whether a player should play in an All-Ireland final,” he told congress.
Originally the motion transferred the power to review such incidents to the Central Competitions Control Committee, but in order to spare referees the review process the proposers agreed that this power of revisiting should simply be restricted to incidents the referee didn’t see and melees that require investigation.
“I believe that the referee will make the decision as the right decision as they see it at the time,” said Cooney when asked for his reaction. “They’ll make that decision regardless of whether that’s an All-Ireland semi-final, quarter-final or the first round of the Championship or an All-Ireland final.
“I don’t think a referee knowingly or consciously, when they’re refereeing a game, thinks ‘oh god, it’s an All-Ireland final next week’. I don’t think referees operate that way.”
Duffy was less sanguine.
“There is a danger that a referee might give a yellow where he should have given a red. We will look at those cases and we will look at appointments – referees who do that simply cannot be appointed.”
Finally, it was announced that Liam Keane, chair of the Central Hearings Committee and who also served as the first secretary of the Disputes Resolution Authority, has been appointed as tour manager for this year’s International Rules series.
Brian Hanley, from Galway, is the new interim Westmeath hurling manager. The county have already been relegated from Division Two and Offaly All-Ireland winner Kevin Martin recently stepped down as manager.
Principal motions at Congress 2011
9. Extend the number of weeks in Division One of the football and hurling leagues in order to facilitate the re-introduction of semi-finals, (Central Council) – PASSED.
14. Introduction of mandatory mouth guards for all grades from 2012, (Central Council) – REFERRED back to Medical, Scientific and Welfare committee for re-submission for 2013.
19. Permit county officers who have served their five-year term to stand again after the elapsing of a further five years, (Ruan, Clare) – PASSED.
23. To remove from Central Council the power to propose changes to playing rules, (Gurteen and Kildress, Tyrone and St Mary’s Tipperary) – DEFEATED. 26. To establish a standing committee to monitor the interpretation and implementation of playing rules in football and hurling and with the power to propose changes deemed necessary regardless of the five-year year rule – PASSED.
27. Any unit that breaks the rule on letting its property to rival sports be subject to a fine rather than suspension, (Central Council) – PASSED.
31. Replace minor level with under-19, (St Joseph’s, Clare) – WITHDRAWN.
36. Completing the All-Ireland club championships within the calendar year rather than having the semi-finals in February and the final on St Patrick’s Day, (Robert Emmets, Antrim) – DEFEATED.
38. Provincial runners-up to be allowed a guaranteed 13-day break between the provincial final and the All-Ireland qualifier series, (Donaghmoyne, Monaghan) – FAILED TO GET TWO THIRDS.
39. Introducing a qualifier series for the under-21 football championship, (Kiltegan, Wicklow) – DEFEATED.
43. Restricting the inter-county closed season to November instead of November and December, (Portarlington, Laois) – DEFEATED.
45. Introduction of one-year trial of match bans rather than time-based suspensions, (Central Council) – PASSED.
46. Stopping the practice of asking the match official to reconsider his decision if he has already taken action. Amended to remove all right of review for inadequately punished red card offences as opposed to, as originally proposed, allowing CCCC to act as a citing authority for such infractions, (Legan Sarsfields, Longford) – PASSED.
48. Restoring replays to those championship matches in which extra time is currently played in the event of teams being level after normal time. (Liam Mellows, Wexford and Urney, Kildare) – PASSED.
