Six talking points about the new GAA rules

If you were one of the few to brave the cold to watch Mayo play Monaghan in MacHale Park last Saturday evening to see some good, free-flowing football then you would have left disappointed.

If you went expecting anything better then you probably need your head examined.

Football in the first week of January is never going to be pretty. The result is irrelevant and performance can be excused too.

For Kevin McStay and his management team, it was about getting exposure and much-needed miles in the legs for a very new-look team. A team that, despite what McStay says, is very much in transition.

What is also in transition is the game itself. The new rules saw their first outing in Castlebar and it was on the forefront of most peoples’ minds in the stands.

This columnist headed along wide-eyed and eager, primarily concerned with seeing the new rules in action and how inter-county teams were going to try and beat them.

Much like the game, we left knowing less than we did when we went in.

READ: First ever Gaelic football match under new rules in MacHale Park ends in defeat for Mayo

To be frank, there wasn’t a huge amount of noticeable difference in this game and the last. The conditions and timing of the year had a huge amount of impact on that it must be said.

It will take much more game time to see a big change, but with that said, there were a number of interesting talking points.

THE FLY GOALKEEPER

If the rule preventing the goalkeeper from getting possession inside his own half was intended to stop wandering goalkeepers it is going to have the opposite effect from what we saw on Saturday.

Both Colm Reape and Rory Beggan found themselves supporting attacks a lot more regularly and setting up twelve versus eleven.

It’s going to be a huge advantage for a team with the likes of a Beggan or a Niall Morgan. Numerous times Beggan found himself in possession just inside the half and no Mayo player was willing to engage until he got near the new scoring arc. They will, in effect, be like a quarter-back.

It also slows play down at times; Monaghan were happy to work it into the corners and recycle back around to allow Beggan get into position. While the opposition three forwards need to be very disciplined here and not allow themselves drop back to put a tackle in, which happened in the second quarter and Monaghan were awarded a 13-metre free.

THE KICK-OUT

The value of an excellent break winner is going to be crucial for any team going forward.

Short kickouts are extremely difficult to pull off with a decent press like Monaghan had on (four players across the arc and three behind).

This meant Colm Reape couldn’t get his first short kick-out off until the second quarter, and the majority he pulled off thereafter were lateral out to the wings.

The rest went long and if your midfield isn’t on top, a team can get really punished with attacks starting from winning a break.

Beggan, typically excellent on kick-outs, struggled too. A lot of Mayo’s good play in the first quarter came from winning Beggan’s kick-outs.

This rule could be a disaster for club footballers.

TWO-POINT SCORING ARC

The conditions on the night were not conducive to long-range shooting - so it’s difficult to judge the impact of this rule right now.

But certainly in the first quarter when players were fresh, you felt they were actively trying to work the shooting opportunity.

On another day, Ryan O’Donoghue could have had a couple and Fergal Boland, uncharacteristically, couldn’t find the sweet spot.

But there was enough evidence there to suggest it will have a big part to play as the summer unfolds.

THREE MEN UP

Players like Ryan O’Donoghue will reap a lot of reward from the space they are now going to be afforded… if Mayo are willing to play a higher-risk kicking game.

Ewan Duffy’s first quarter point came as a direct result of this new rule. O’Donoghue was isolated in attack and received a lovely pop pass which he took on the run and offloaded to Duffy, who ran through a scored his first point in a Mayo senior jersey.

Monaghan and Mayo were both pressing at the scoring arc, which meant there is a visible gap between them and the most advanced player.

With the addition of the goalie, defending teams are a man down so dropping a sweeper back is no longer an option.

There will be a lot of reward for teams who can deliver quality ball inside to isolated attackers.

From our count, there was only one infringement of the rule, which came in the third quarter. Cian McHale stepped inside the half-way line, and the roars from the eagle-eyed Monaghan subs brought the attention to referee John Glavey who ordered the 13-metre free.

INFRINGEMENTS

Mayo were penalised on more than a couple of occasions for dissent by referee John Glavey, which could have a huge bearing on a game in the coming months.

Mayo manager Kevin McStay admitted to The Mayo News afterwards that players’ habits will have to change, particularly in handing the ball to the opposition if a free is rewarded against you.

It’s a petty rule, to be honest. And it will be an absolute travesty if a big championship game is decided by it in the future. Dylan Prendergast was penalised in the third quarter for this rule and he merely placed the ball on the ground instead of in the hands of the opponent.

More than harsh.

REF WATCH

The most pressure on anyone going into last Saturday was probably referee John Glavey.

This columnist found himself asking ChatGPT for a quick refresh of the rule changes on the way to MacHale Park last Saturday just as a reminder.

We’re not sure if the Aghamore man had to do something similar, or if he even uses AI, but to his credit, Glavey didn’t put a foot wrong and controlled the game really well.