Gaelic Football - Rules & Regulations discussion/clarification

[Captain Obvious]

One other problem: you are allowing a small committee to have complete say over the entire game.  It appears they've been given carte blanche to do whatever they like.  Is there any time limit to FRC activities or is their dictatorial power over the game open ended?

Thus the goal is more entertainment and more action.  The FRC believes Kerry hitting long balls to David Clifford to be good for the game...which is fine.  When Ethan Rafferty, and other Ulster goalkeepers, run riot through opposing defences the FRC suddenly isn't interested in more excitement and scoring and put a stop to it.  You see the problem?  The FRC is picking winners and losers.

No major sport has ever overhauled its entire game like the GAA has just done.  Normally it's one rule change, to test the waters, then another and so on.  The National Football League has been desperate to get more offence into its game.  Every rule change going back to the 1970s has been in favour of the offence and to handicap the defence.  They've finally accomplished what they wanted: all offence, all passing and all action.  What the NFL took decades to do, the GAA is trying to do in months.  Football traditionalists will tell you both organisations have one goal: to destroy the offence-defence balance.  In other words, ruin the game.

I'm not trying to say who is right or wrong.  Obviously I'm in the camp of the traditionalists but that doesn't mean I'm right.  I'm simply trying to point out that a sport with the history and tradition of Gaelic football needs to mind that history and tradition and keep an eye on the long term consequences of any changes.

The moment you open Pandora's Box and allow so many changes at once, you open the door to endless changes.  Isn't that a slippery slope?

You have hit the nail on the head.

[flowerpot]

Few lads on here will lose their shit reading that factually correct post.

[Truthsayer]

Few lads on here will lose their shit reading that factually correct post.

Only ones losing their shit is those bemoaning the positive changes to a game that coaches had destroyed. After a great day's football such a lament 

[marty34]

Few lads on here will lose their shit reading that factually correct post.

Only ones losing their shit is those bemoaning the positive changes to a game that coaches had destroyed. After a great day's football such a lament 

Yeah. My opinion is it's better to play in and watch this year, compared to 5 years ago.


I just think the ball is in play more which means more action.

[Truthsayer]

Few lads on here will lose their shit reading that factually correct post.

Only ones losing their shit is those bemoaning the positive changes to a game that coaches had destroyed. After a great day's football such a lament 

Yeah. My opinion is it's better to play in and watch this year, compared to 5 years ago.


I just think the ball is in play more which means more action.

I know of plenty players feel the same way.

[quit yo jibbajabba]

One other problem: you are allowing a small committee to have complete say over the entire game.  It appears they've been given carte blanche to do whatever they like.  Is there any time limit to FRC activities or is their dictatorial power over the game open ended?

Thus the goal is more entertainment and more action.  The FRC believes Kerry hitting long balls to David Clifford to be good for the game...which is fine.  When Ethan Rafferty, and other Ulster goalkeepers, run riot through opposing defences the FRC suddenly isn't interested in more excitement and scoring and put a stop to it.  You see the problem?  The FRC is picking winners and losers.

No major sport has ever overhauled its entire game like the GAA has just done.  Normally it's one rule change, to test the waters, then another and so on.  The National Football League has been desperate to get more offence into its game.  Every rule change going back to the 1970s has been in favour of the offence and to handicap the defence.  They've finally accomplished what they wanted: all offence, all passing and all action.  What the NFL took decades to do, the GAA is trying to do in months.  Football traditionalists will tell you both organisations have one goal: to destroy the offence-defence balance.  In other words, ruin the game.

I'm not trying to say who is right or wrong.  Obviously I'm in the camp of the traditionalists but that doesn't mean I'm right.  I'm simply trying to point out that a sport with the history and tradition of Gaelic football needs to mind that history and tradition and keep an eye on the long term consequences of any changes.

The moment you open Pandora's Box and allow so many changes at once, you open the door to endless changes.  Isn't that a slippery slope?

You have hit the nail on the head.

Man doesn't belong on here, he speaks too much sense

[Milltown Row2]

GAA has evolved over the years, it's not the same game 5 years ago to what it was 120 years

It's just this time instead of one or two changes it's 7 and we are only into the first year of it and first round of championship games..

There are positives and negatives

Let's see how it pans out

I'm neither in or out now considering the games I've done.

[Truthsayer]

The word 'traditionalist' being a bit overcooked here... sounding like the Orange Order:
traditionalist
noun
plural noun: traditionalists
an advocate of maintaining tradition, especially so as to resist change.

Not sure what tradition they hark back to... the game pre-70s bore no resemblance to what the Dubs-Kerry went on to play and on and on it changed through the decades.. there have been massive rule changes down the years as well.
Admittedly this has been radical change in one go but by f** it was needed. The game had become an aberration. I never seen it in a worse state and that's going back a long time. Optimistic that's all behind us...

[The Trap]

Surely people are free to have their own opinions without being told how to think?

If you love everything about the new rules that's your prerogative.

If you are more traditional in your views and would like to have seen less change then you are entitled to that opinion too.

How will football get to the stage that we see a packed ground like in Clare for the hurling today?

Because no matter how you think the rules are going the public are not turning up to watch.

[The Boy Wonder]

Philly McMahon made a good point in his Indo column yesterday about the sameness of the games under the new rules – criss-crossing around the arc probing for an opening.

For many the 40m arc is a blight on the game and there was no need to change the scoring system.

EoinW made a very good post about the number of untested changes introduced by the FRC. Take a look at this weekend's match threads and note the range of discussions about the interpretation of these new rules.

Yes, there was a need to address problems with how the game has evolved in the past 10-15 years. I believe that the FRC should have focused on a small number of issues and made only a small number of changes, e.g. measures to limit handpassing, back-passing and introduction of a shot clock

[Milltown Row2]

Philly McMahon made a good point in his Indo column yesterday about the sameness of the games under the new rules – criss-crossing around the arc probing for an opening.

For many the 40m arc is a blight on the game and there was no need to change the scoring system.

EoinW made a very good post about the number of untested changes introduced by the FRC. Take a look at this weekend's match threads and note the range of discussions about the interpretation of these new rules.

Yes, there was a need to address problems with how the game has evolved in the past 10-15 years. I believe that the FRC should have focused on a small number of issues and made only a small number of changes, e.g. measures to limit handpassing, back-passing and introduction of a shot clock

The shot clock would be difficult for ref's I feel

[Truthsayer]

Surely people are free to have their own opinions without being told how to think?

If you love everything about the new rules that's your prerogative.

If you are more traditional in your views and would like to have seen less change then you are entitled to that opinion too.

How will football get to the stage that we see a packed ground like in Clare for the hurling today?

Because no matter how you think the rules are going the public are not turning up to watch.

Fair comments. Is an emotive issue. I think is tweaks needed still but def a huge improvement.
Don't think football will ever hit the level of the Munster hurling which is do or die with bottom 2 in league of 5 gone. Practically every game is epic. Not so much in Leinster till the quarter finals.

[Brendan]

Surely people are free to have their own opinions without being told how to think?

If you love everything about the new rules that's your prerogative.

If you are more traditional in your views and would like to have seen less change then you are entitled to that opinion too.

How will football get to the stage that we see a packed ground like in Clare for the hurling today?

Because no matter how you think the rules are going the public are not turning up to watch.

Fair comments. Is an emotive issue. I think is tweaks needed still but def a huge improvement.
Don't think football will ever hit the level of the Munster hurling which is do or die with bottom 2 in league of 5 gone. Practically every game is epic. Not so much in Leinster till the quarter finals.

Perfectly demonstrated today with 2 draws between 4 teams who could all realistically dream of winning the Liam McCarthy this year and 1 or possibly 2 aren't going past the group phase

[The Trap]

Truthsayer you have been forceful in your comments and that is fine. As I said everyone entitled to feel how they want to.

What I would say to people who love the rules is try to understand there is another point of view.

The media have been very one sided and Irish people don't like being told how to think.

Yes some change was needed and I would say everyone could agree with that. But the amount of change needed is the debate!

Losing a large section of gaelic football followers because the powers that be may not be willing to compromise on the changes would be very detrimental for the game.

Choose a small amount of the changes and see how the game pans out over the next 5 years. Keeping them all for 5 years would be a big risk.

[Milltown Row2]

Truthsayer you have been forceful in your comments and that is fine. As I said everyone entitled to feel how they want to.

What I would say to people who love the rules is try to understand there is another point of view.

The media have been very one sided and Irish people don't like being told how to think.

Yes some change was needed and I would say everyone could agree with that. But the amount of change needed is the debate!

Losing a large section of gaelic football followers because the powers that be may not be willing to compromise on the changes would be very detrimental for the game.

Choose a small amount of the changes and see how the game pans out over the next 5 years. Keeping them all for 5 years would be a big risk.

Are people not watching football because of the rules?