THE missed penalty chances by Meath's Trevor Giles and Dublin's Paul Bealin in Sunday's Leinster senior football championship match at Croke Park, not surprisingly, have led to renewed debate, largely on the geometric details of the Gaelic football award compared to its soccer equivalent.
Former Derry manager Micky Moran, who hopes to guide Sligo over the first hurdle of the Connacht senior football championship with victory over Roscommon on Sunday, has strong views on the matter.
"It should be made easier for the kicker," said Moran. "When a player is fouled so close in with a goal imminent the award should be more emphatically in the kicker's favour. He deserves a better chance of scoring a goal."
The goal is one yard narrower than in soccer, though the kick is two yards longer - 14 yards in Gaelic as against 12 in soccer. There are obvious disadvantages.
The rules governing the penalty take in Gaelic also favours the goalkeeper, who is allowed to move about on his line, though he can't advance.
Kerry and Cork managers are divided in their opinions on the topic. Whereas Larry Tompkins would favour change to increase the penalty taker's chances with a shorter spot kick, Paidi O Se opts for the status quo, emphasising the importance of power in the kick".
Reflecting on Bealin's crucial and dramatic failure from the spot, Dublin selector Christy Kane said: "Don't blame Paul. We had named him as a number one penalty taker. Jason (Sherlock) was the second choice. Paul was under huge pressure. We had other chances to win the game."
Kane and fellow selector Lorcan Redmond will be meeting manager Micky Whelan within the next couple of days to discuss the future of the Dublin management. They will in turn meet the players, most of whom were unwinding on the golf course yesterday.
The management team have one year to go before their three-year tenure is completed. It is expected that all three, encouraged by Dublin's fight back from nine points adrift, will be willing to stay on. The management's future will be reviewed at county board level, and a final decision is expected to emerge at the July 7th county committee meeting.
Meanwhile, Clare's hopes of advancing to the Munster football final at the expense of Cork in Ennis on Sunday have been weakened because of fitness doubts involving four key players.
John O'Keeffe will name his side this evening, but at this stage he cannot be guaranteed the services of full back Frankie Griffin, midfielder Peter Cosgrove, David Keane nor, of course, sharp shooter Aidan O'Keeffe, who has missed many games because of a hamstring injury. Griffin is troubled with a leg injury, Cosgrove went over on an ankle in the opening minute of a tournament match last week and hobbled off, while Keane strained a leg muscle in a match against Tipperary last Wednesday.
Roscommon manager Donal Shine has got to be the most resilient of the manager set. Despite a frustrating catalogue of All-Ireland club final defeats in the 1980s, he is still as keen as mustard to see his native county do well in this year's Connacht championship.
He was a player on the defeated Clanna Gael team in the 1983 All-Ireland club decider, and manager in four subsequent finals from 1986 to 1989 when defeat at the final hurdle was again "Clans" fate. He will name his side to take on Micky Moran's Sligo this evening.
Roscommon are pleased with their League campaign (five wins from seven outings) which resulted in promotion, along with Down, to Division Two.
They also won the Connacht league, but their half back strengths were diluted on Saturday last when left wing back Gerry Cregg sustained a knee injury in training. He is ruled out for Sunday's game, and either Davy O'Connor or Ciaran Heneghan is expected to deputise.
Full forward Fergal O'Donnell will also miss the game due to his back complaint, but Athlone Town goalkeeper Shane Curran is certain to man the posts.
Sligo have delayed naming their side until this evening to afford team captain Mick Galvin and half forward Brian Walsh a chance to prove they have recovered from injury.
"Basically, the team is a product of fine under-21 teams of recent years. Ten of them are under 22 years. A win for us on Sunday would boost our five-year youth policy plan," said Moran.
Barry McGowan, Donegal's man of the match against Antrim in the first round, is likely to be ruled out of contention for a place in Sunday's Ulster semi-final against Cavan. McGowan is suffering from a recurring hamstring injury, aggravated while assisting his club Killybegs at the weekend.
Cavan replacements Terry Farrelly (for Paul Brady) and Ronan Carolan (for Ray Cunningham) are expected to start, but Martin McHugh is not announcing his side before tomorrow at the earliest.
Meanwhile, the president of the GAA, Joe McDonagh, and director general, Liam Mulvihill, have expressed their shock at the tragic deaths of two young players at the weekend. Tyrone minor Paul McGirr collapsed in the Ulster championship match in Omagh and later died in hospital. Gearoid Cronin collapsed and died when playing in the West Wicklow primary schools football league final.
McDonagh described the deaths as tragic, and extended deepest sympathy to both families, their schools and counties.
