New rules for next years National League

[Zapatista]

I've no problem with the rules as they stand. I am all in favour of experimenting though.

I think the sq ball rule works well but that will never be fully accepted until experiments prove it and we will hear the same old arguments every year untill it is experimented with. I think the square ball rule shouldn't be changed and unless we test other options soon it will be changed eventually for changes sake.

I think the mark is a load of balls. It isn't part of our game. It would be like watching a rugby game and then going to a GAA game and saying 'I think it would be great if hand pass could only be made backwards and if you wanted to pass the ball forward you have to kick it'. This is from a different game. If there are managers out there who think their high fielders are at a disadvantage they should put their money where thir mouths are. The should tell their players not to try and field the ball or else drop their high fielders for people our are able to play the game within the rules.

[screenexile]

I've no problem with the rules as they stand. I am all in favour of experimenting though.

I think the sq ball rule works well but that will never be fully accepted until experiments prove it and we will hear the same old arguments every year untill it is experimented with. I think the square ball rule shouldn't be changed and unless we test other options soon it will be changed eventually for changes sake.

I think the mark is a load of balls. It isn't part of our game. It would be like watching a rugby game and then going to a GAA game and saying 'I think it would be great if hand pass could only be made backwards and if you wanted to pass the ball forward you have to kick it'. This is from a different game. If there are managers out there who think their high fielders are at a disadvantage they should put their money where thir mouths are. The should tell their players not to try and field the ball or else drop their high fielders for people our are able to play the game within the rules.

That actually happens. There are players in Tyrone well capable of fielding a ball but Harte does not see it as a useful skill and therefore does not pick them. The High catch is a fantastic skill when executed properly. To me there is nothing better than jumping with your opponent only for you to land on your feet with the ball in your hands. I get more of a kick out of that than scoring goals or points.

Apart from the fact it adds excitement I think that a Mark from a kickout between the two 45's will add to our games. You have 10 seconds to use the ball and then play goes on. It will not unduly slow the game down and will stop this ruck of men pinballing around the place for breaking ball!!

[longrunsthefox]

Why the constant need to change the rules. The game is fine .

It is hardly fine when someone makes a high catch, which is a great skill to watch, comes down and three players stand around him and he is blown up for over carrying.
Don't get the idea of changing penalty kick distance. Never was a problem for Stephen O'Neill.

[ardmhachaabu]

This mark thing, it's a load of sh1te and seriously if it makes it beyond experimental use it would really put me and a lot of others off even watching games

[BennyHarp]

I think it's the sign of a truly great player to be able to catch the ball and break tackles when he hits the ground and seeing him emerge from a group of players is a great part of our game. We just have to implement the current rules properly not change them! When we start to take away the physical element of our game we are on a slippery slope!

[moysider]

Cant see what good the mark is going to to. Sure' high fielding is one of the great skills but has been more of a liability than useful since I remember. Don t think the mark solves anything as most coaches wont want the game slowed down by stopping when somebody catches a kick out. I mean by the time a fella calls for it and the opposition backs off the requisite distance and regrouped what advantage will he have had? He ll be forced to kick long or go short to somebody with a marker on top of him. Every game evolves and trying to introduce a foreign concept to revive a largely obsolete skill is imo a waste of time. And I m coming from a county that has had more than our quota of high fielders. But where did it get us? High fielding is like the chip-up lift. Lovely when it work. But most coaches, with good reason, hate chip-up guys and the fella who goes for the high catch every time. 

[Bogball XV]

• 4 points for a goal has to the way forward
• the advantage rule seems to make sense
• square ball was impossible to police so has to go
• the mark - if it's for kickouts only that's grand, I wouldn't want it thoughout the game though.

[trileacman]

• 4 points for a goal has to the way forward
• the advantage rule seems to make sense
• square ball was impossible to police so has to go
• the mark - if it's for kickouts only that's grand, I wouldn't want it thoughout the game though.

Rubbish, 2 quick fire goals and a team are out of site. Pack the defence and see the game off, most negative strategy you could take.
Also say a team are down by 2 with 3 mins to go. Score a goal, pack the defence, game over. no time for the other team to get the required 2 points and no way of getting the goal.

[macdanger2]

Will be interesting to see how they interpret the rule about the ref not blowing when one team is attacking - when are you considered to be attacking? Inside the opposition half with the ball?? I think introducing a timer as in Ladies Football would be a better option.

Would like to see refs clamp down on players who "steal" yards when kicking a free (scoarbale free) from the hands.

[southsidejohnny]

What will happen is this. The managers or players will kick up a storm about some aspect of the rules. Come the championship they will be binned. In the meantime a competition that should have merit is devalued. Allianze or whoever sponsers the League should look for their money back. What we need is an understanding of the current rules and better refs to enforce them. Biggest problem in GAA at county level and club is that most refs are useless as witnessed by the debacle of the Meath v mayo match this year. The one thing that should be put in but wont be for strange reasons is the clock. At present we have had daylight robbery with some creative messing with time added on.

[Zapatista]

That actually happens. There are players in Tyrone well capable of fielding a ball but Harte does not see it as a useful skill and therefore does not pick them. The High catch is a fantastic skill when executed properly. To me there is nothing better than jumping with your opponent only for you to land on your feet with the ball in your hands. I get more of a kick out of that than scoring goals or points.

Apart from the fact it adds excitement I think that a Mark from a kickout between the two 45's will add to our games. You have 10 seconds to use the ball and then play goes on. It will not unduly slow the game down and will stop this ruck of men pinballing around the place for breaking ball!!

I find it hard to believe that Harte doesn't think fielding is usfull. I'd say it more a case of the players he has (some who are well able to field) are stronger in other aspects of the game.

Darragh Ó Sé is the perfect example of how a high fielder is an addition to a team. If Ó Sé was a Tyrone man I'd say Harte wouldn't be telling him there is no use in that skill.

[mountainboii]

Cant see what good the mark is going to to. Sure' high fielding is one of the great skills but has been more of a liability than useful since I remember. Don t think the mark solves anything as most coaches wont want the game slowed down by stopping when somebody catches a kick out. I mean by the time a fella calls for it and the opposition backs off the requisite distance and regrouped what advantage will he have had? He ll be forced to kick long or go short to somebody with a marker on top of him. Every game evolves and trying to introduce a foreign concept to revive a largely obsolete skill is imo a waste of time. And I m coming from a county that has had more than our quota of high fielders. But where did it get us? High fielding is like the chip-up lift. Lovely when it work. But most coaches, with good reason, hate chip-up guys and the fella who goes for the high catch every time.

I agree with this. This mark shite is the product of Spillane fueled, misty eyed, nostalgia that has infected a significant proprotion of Gaelic football followers. The game is constantly evolving, attempting to turn back the clock on this evolution is a futile exercise.

[thewobbler]

There will most likely be 3 tactical ploys introduced by teams weaker at fielding.

The first would involve dragging the half-back line further back at kickouts to ensure that the mark doesn't allow quick penetrative ball into the full-forward line. Blanket defence in other words.

The second would involve preventing at all costs the opposing midfielders from getting a run at the ball to take a high-flyer. If his momentum is disrupted even a little, it'll be enough to balance the playing field when it comes to aerial antics. This means though that your team's midfielders are definitely going up to spoil, and as such, will require as many bodies around them as possible for the break. In other words, increasing the problem that this was designed to solve.

The third would involved clever kickout routines so that teams try to isolate their runners, allowing them to take the ball at speed. This would be a great addition to our game, but it isn't really what the rule change was designed to do.   

[thejuice]

The square ball rule should be changed, It would be so much easier to call, even the umpires wouldn't be afraid to call it, if it was like this.

A player is not allowed into their opponents small square until the ball:

  1. Is touched by an opponent in the square or
  2. Bounces in the square.

[Bud Wiser]

Football is only a game of running basketball and the fittest team wins.  If ye are going to run the length of the field handing the ball to each other as ye run along then why not go all the way into the square and throw it in the net.  As for as moving the penalty spot a yard nearer the goals, what ye should do is get a peg like we used to use for snaring rabbits and put a string on the ball and if you miss you have up to three try's at it.  Thank god for hurling !