Players warned to abide by the Rules

Five players have been put on notice by the joint GAA-AFL Control Committee as to their behaviour in tomorrow's decisive International Rules second Test at Croke Park. The committee investigated incidents during last weekend's first Test and decided to hand down five yellow cards to players ahead of tomorrow.

Two of them, Ireland's Evan Kelly and Australia's David Neitz, were shown yellow last week and served their 15 minutes in the sin bin but the Control Committee has decided that they, together with Josh Francou and Brett Montgomery of Australia and Sligo's Eamonn O'Hara, will carry yellow cards into the second Test.

This means that if any of them are cited for a further yellow-card offence tomorrow, they will be immediately shown red and sent off. Red cards carry with them certain suspension. It was also announced that any yellow cards dispensed tomorrow would carry through into next year's series.

Two other players, Tadhg Kennelly of Kerry and the Sydney Swans and Australia's Cameron Ling, have been warned about their behaviour. The reprimand was based on both players being seen as the "third man in" in separate incidents.

Paddy Clarke, an Ireland selector last year, appealed the five-match suspension imposed on him last year. He will have served three of those five matches by tomorrow evening and it was announced that his case would be heard by correspondence.

The Control Committee also issued some recommendations to the match referees, Brian White and Scott McLaren. Firstly they were advised to punish less leniently the third-man tackle, which although common in Australia is illegal in Gaelic games. Secondly, in order to eliminate off-the-ball fouling the officials were advised to adopt a zonal system of refereeing rather than both follow the play.

Thirdly, they were asked to come down heavily on the third man joining a fracas between two players. This is aimed at discouraging the general melees that twice broke out last week. The reasoning goes that if two players are brawling, the situation will be contained until a third party exacerbates the situation.

It was emphasised that most problems arose from the combination of two sports and the fact that players sometimes do things that, while part and parcel of their own code, aren't allowed in the hybrid game.

"Players do things instinctively under pressure," according to Australian coach Garry Lyon, "and forget that they are playing a compromise set of rules and in any contact sport played competitively you're always going to have ones (incidents) a bit hard to deal with."

The disciplinary report brings to an end the controversy that raged in the early part of the week after GAA president Seán McCague told a media briefing he would seek to bring the international series to an end if indiscipline within the game wasn't curbed.

Injury news was scant. Ireland have no problems heading into the second Test but coach John O'Keeffe will note with interest that Australia's man of the match from the first Test, Matthew Pavlich, will have to undergo a fitness test this morning.

Meanwhile, the GAA are pleased that the expected crowd is approaching sell-out proportions. By yesterday afternoon it was revealed that 71,000 tickets had been sold and with only 8,000 left to fill to capacity the new Croke Park, those hoping to attend were advised to buy the remaining tickets rather than risk trying to purchase them on the day.

Assuming the numbers turn up - last week a number of ticket holders didn't appear, presumably due to the foul weather, which is expected to return tomorrow - the attendance will be a record for International Rules. Previously the biggest crowd was 65,000 in Melbourne three years ago and the record for Dublin is 57,000, at the second Test in 2000.

Finally, there will be another international opening the bill tomorrow when Ireland play Scotland in a hybrid hurling-shinty match that starts at 1.15. There is a concern over the availability of Kilkenny's Peter Barry who has a conflicting club commitment. Definitely out are Barry's team-mate Philip Larkin and Tipperary's Eamonn Corcoran. John Carroll, also of Tipperary, has been called into the panel.