Dublin's John Costello says hurling would benefit from black card

Dublin chief executive John Costello has said that hurling would benefit from the introduction of the black card. In the course of a wide ranging annual report, he says that the extension of the sanction introduced to football to punish cynical play and calculated fouling would help restore advantage to attacking play and away from defensive fouling.

He contrasted the uproar last year when Tyrone's Seán Cavanagh deliberately took down Monaghan opponent Conor McManus with the lack of outcry in a similar situation in this year's hurling championship - presumably Donal O'Grady's foul on Richie Power in the All-Ireland semi-final between Limerick and Kilkenny.

“Seán Cavanagh was accorded pariah status by a certain pundit and his foul conflated into a symbol of the win-at-all-costs attitude afflicting modern football. Yet there was only a minor commotion - no more - over the despairing yet every-bit-as-intentional infraction in the hurling game.

“If the hurling player was an inter-county footballer, he would have received a black card (we presume, although that’s open to question on this year’s evidence); moreover, his team would have been reduced to 14 men as he was already carrying a yellow. Could anyone have reasonably argued with such an outcome?

“The above snapshot is just one example of where hurling could actually benefit from a black card deterrent - even more so if the current penalty rule isn’t amended to tilt the balance back in favour of the attacking team, instead of encouraging the fouler.”

Costello elsewhere expressed support for the idea of restricting defenders at a hurling penalty to just one, the goalkeeper, now that the GAA has ordered all such awards to be struck - as opposed to just lifted - from 20 metres. He also favoured the introduction of an ‘advantage’ rule.

“Here’s another area where hurling could learn a thing or two from its big-ball cousin. The advantage rule. It works. It favours the attacker. It punishes the cynic. Just go for it!”

Speaking about the implementation of the black card in football after the measure’s first full season he said that whereas fears players would be ordered off in large numbers hadn’t been realised, problems had been experienced on the other end of the spectrum.

“What has transpired, however, is that some referees have gone the other way, erring on the side of caution (every pun intended!) by flashing yellow when players have committed blatant black card offences. Or, in some cases, by issuing no cards at all.

“This has happened at every level of football - including the highest of all, towards the business end of the All-Ireland senior championship.

“We accept that referees must be satisfied that a deliberate transgression has occurred. Yet, there were at least a couple of high-profile summer examples where blatant pull-downs resulted in stonewall penalties - but no card. Moreover, these non-decisions, arguably, had a direct influence on the ensuing outcome.

“After the inter-county season concluded, Croke Park released statistics revealing a 9.5pc rise in the average number of scores per Senior Football Championship game in 2014; a free count reduction of more than five per game; a dramatic drop in yellow cards and a championship average of less than one black card per game. All to be welcomed. But statistics don’t always convey the full picture.”

Elsewhere in his report Costello becomes the latest GAA official to express reservations about the proposal to conclude All-Ireland club championships by the end of the calendar year. This goes before Central Council next month and if approved will be debated at annual congress in February.

“In theory it’s a perfectly valid aspiration,” he writes, “and there is no doubting that prolonging the elite club season until St Patrick’s Day causes its own share of headaches for the clubs involved, their counties, and indeed for the overall fixtures calendar.

“But will it work in practice? Can all counties hope to meet this demanding schedule given the conflicting demands of the inter-county season? Will enough people be willing to compromise? More pointedly, will Croke Park grab the bull by the horns and restrict the length of the inter-county season, thus offering sufficient leeway for the clubs?

“Finally, this altered schedule will lead us to another inevitable crux: the inter-county dual star is on the verge of extinction (there were several high-profiles demises in recent weeks) but, even at club level, players who excel at both codes may have to start making some very hard choices.”

The work of Anthony Daly with the county's senior hurlers is acknowledged, in the wake of his stepping-down as Dublin manager. In doing so, Costello quotes an anonymous hurler.

“I knew we were on the right road when representatives of the top hurling counties less frequently entered the Dublin dressing-room after matches that they had won to tell us how we were coming along and to keep at it.

“Anthony’s loyalty to the cause, his expertise, his charisma and drive were key factors in Dublin’s ascension up the rankings. He leaves Dublin in a much healthier position than when he joined. However, the work being done by clubs and the underage development squads have obviously also played an important role.”