GAA eyeing up rugby league referees

[ziggysego]

The GAA are considering turning to rugby league referees in an effort to rescue the International Rules series.

The GAA are now exploring the possibility of using neutral referees in an effort to re-instate the matches and have approached the Rugby Football League with the idea.

RFL match officials director Stuart Cummings, who was planning to visit the GAA as a part of a fact-finding mission, admits: 'It would be interesting.

'We will be willing to look at any proposals - but as yet, no discussions have taken place.'

GAA president Nickey Brennan is due to meet Australia Football League chief executive Andrew Demetriou in Paris today for exploratory talks on a re-instatement of the series.

Sourced RTÉ.ie: http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/2007/1018/internationalrules.html

[the Deel Rover]

 its rugby league players they need not referees

[clarshack]

is this to do with the very biased refereeing of the australian official last time out?

[cavan4ever]

[magickingdom]

great idea, i hope they do it. love to see the ir series up and running again. full house in galway and croker last november and better to watch than what went on in croker last night..

[Tiger Craig]

is this to do with the very biased refereeing of the australian official last time out?

More to do with the biased umpiring of the Irish guy I hear - depends how you look at it

[GalwayBayBoy]

is this to do with the very biased refereeing of the australian official last time out?

More to do with the biased umpiring of the Irish guy I hear - depends how you look at it

I think it's fair to say that most of the refereeing problems have been with the Australian officials who seem to take an optional approach to applying the rules.

[Tiger Craig]

That's the view in Ireland - not the view in Australia.

Personally I think the whole thing should be forgotten about. The GAA will never be happy unless all physical contact is removed. The Australians will never get that the Irish see things like Pearces excellent (in our eyes) tackle on Gerathy or the shoulder bump on Coulter are 'thuggish'.

Also, any attempt to carry over suspensions into the regular seasons won't work - the clubs will just ban their players from playing. Why would they take the risk?

[ykickamoocow]

is this to do with the very biased refereeing of the australian official last time out?

More to do with the biased umpiring of the Irish guy I hear - depends how you look at it

I think it's fair to say that most of the refereeing problems have been with the Australian officials who seem to take an optional approach to applying the rules.

Im not certain how the rules are enforced in Gaelic Football but in AFL alot of the rules are open to interpretation and as a result the umpires tend to use their best judgement with each situation. Rules like holding the ball and hands in the back can be interpreted very differently depending on with umpire is at the game. I would imagine they took a similar approach to umpiring at the International Rules series.

[Tiger Craig]

True

Plus AFL umpires are used to seeing more contact - it just doesn't register. Just because someone gets huurt doesn't mean thee is a foul or play should stop.

The standard if a fight breaks out also is to let play continue, and let the fight take care of itself - guys generally stop fighting if there is a ball to be chased.

[Tiger Craig]

The standard if a fight breaks out also is to let play continue, and let the fight take care of itself - guys generally stop fighting if there is a ball to be chased.

I have never heard so much nonsense in my life! I am going to take the players' side of it here and not the referees'.
Have you ever been on the receiving end of a dig in a football match? What is the first reaction you have? Dig back!
Now, as a referee;
Two men punching away at each other, there's a good chance that it will develop into a 30 man brawl. Nip it in the bud immediately. Put them both off.
I am finding your message to be very strange.
Am I missing some sort of very subtle sarcasm?

No

Remember I am talking about the AFL approach to umpiring, not the GAA one.

Firstly, in AFL there is no send off rule. I repeat no send off rule. The umpire can abandon the match, but he cannot send off a player regardless of what he does. He can report him, but that's all.

Secondly there are 3 umpires on the field - and it is a big field. So, play is allowed to continue while 1 of the umpires keeps an eye on the incident. Umpires will never ever touch the players to pull them apart. Of course if it is an all-in then play may stop, but not a couple of guys having a bit of a punch on.

That's why in one of last years games there was a score while a fight was going on - the Aussie umpire just followed the play as he was used to doing. Not saying it was right in IR, but thats what happedned.

[HeaveHo]

It might sound like nonsense but that is what happens. Apart from the fact that all games are subject to detailed video review (players are often charged by video evidence a day or two after the game has finished) an AFL player will be more concerned about his opposite number sneaking off and kicking a goal then finishing a fight. Holding the game up while a fight is broken up only enables others to join the fray (in AFL experience). There is no send off rule in AFL (well not at the higher levels) which may solve the problem but can create others (like a player being sent off incorrectly). The AFL prefer to deal with these things after the event when all the evidence can be scrutinized.

I don't think a rugby league referee is going to help overcome the Irish concerns about the physicality of the IR game. Rugby league is a very combative game from a physical point of view and most league players consider AFL a very soft game. League referees are used of 110kg blokes running headlong into each other at pace. Pearce's tackle on Gerraghty wouldn't register as a problem (as is the case in the AFL). The series should be canned because the tackle issue will never be overcome. GAA players don't tackle and asking AFL players not to tackle would not be effective when it is instinctive to tackle.

If enough Irish lads move to the AFL then maybe some sort of country of origin game can be organised but that would be a long way off.

[stephenite]

He's right, have been to numerous games where two lads are involved off the ball and they'rer ignored. However there are cameras everywhere at every AFL game - and if you break the rules they have a proper disciplinary system in place, it's consistent and players know what will happen.

Unlike the GAA where unfortunately there is no consistency in application of the rules and players can get off by running to the courts when suspension for an important game is on the cards

[orangeman]

Just forget about the whole idea - when you need to worry about who and how you're going to bring order to the game, then the game should be scrapped !

[Maximus Marillius]

great idea, i hope they do it. love to see the ir series up and running again. full house in galway and croker last november and better to watch than what went on in croker last night..

Why do you want to watch thsi game...is not gaelic football...ifs it is because you actually like a different type of football..grand...but ynderstand it is not Gaa football so why is our governing body trying to promote it, WTF has it to do with gaelic football.