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The GAA has confirmed a package of experimental hurling rules will be trialled in Higher Education Division One games from October, including limits on handpasses, revised puck-out positioning, new black-card offences and throw-in changes. John Meyler's High Performance Board developed the proposals.
The GAA is to trial a range of experimental hurling rules in third-level competition next month, starting with the Higher Education Division One league in October.
The proposals have been finalised by John Meyler's High Performance Board and are designed to increase the pace of the game, reduce unsporting play and reward skilful scoring. The trial period will allow clubs and colleges to adapt to the new regulations while giving the committee information on game flow, scoring patterns and player safety. The GAA says the sport is evolving, and the aim is to reward skill, encourage forward play and reduce opportunities for unfair advantage.
No team will be permitted to play two consecutive handpasses. If a player receives a handpass from a team-mate and then attempts another handpass, it will be a technical foul and the opposition will be awarded a free. The handpass rule now places the onus on the player to ensure the pass is struck with a clear and definite action of the hand. That is also described in the proposals as a clear striking motion.
The maximum number of steps with the ball in the hand increases from four to six. A player may carry the ball for only six consecutive steps, or hold it for no longer than the time needed to take those six steps. Puck-out rules are also changing. All puckouts must travel beyond the 45-metre line before they can be played by another player from the defending team.
When a puckout is being taken, three players from each side must remain between the 21-metre and 45-metre lines closest to the player taking it. Throw-in rules have been revised too. At the main throw-in, one player from each side contests the ball, while a second player from each team stands on the opposite sideline at the halfway line, and these second players swap sidelines for the second-half throw-in. All other players must be positioned behind their respective 45-metre lines.
For all other throw-ins, one player from either side contests the ball and the remaining players must stand 13 metres away. Both contesting players must clash for the ball with a ground stroke, with failure to do so giving a free to the opposition. The tackle rule will be amended to penalise a player who holds an opponent with an arm as well as a hand.
The black card is being expanded to cover denial of a goalscoring opportunity by a deliberate collision with an opponent once the opponent has played the ball away, by deliberately pulling an opponent's jersey, or by deliberately preventing or restricting an opponent from moving or playing the ball through holding the opponent up. In those black-card cases, a penalty is awarded to the affected team and the offender receives a yellow card, or a red card if the infraction meets the red-card threshold.
This means a clearly violent tackle made after the ball has been played away results in a card and a penalty. The advantage rule will allow a team whose player is fouled during a five-second advantage period to take a free from the location of the initial foul or from any subsequent foul.
The referee may extend the five seconds to allow a score attempt, and if the team that won the advantage commits a foul during the period it retains the initial advantage. Scoring changes include a new sideline-cut rule. A sideline cut struck over the crossbar will be worth two points, provided no attacking player has touched the ball. The maor foirne is set to return.
One official from each team will be permitted to enter the field during breaks in play only, entering between the two 65-metre lines. The official must exit at the nearest perimeter point, including when requested by the referee, and any other incursion is unauthorised. Referees will brief both team captains before matches on the rule changes being trialled and on the renewed, targeted implementation of existing rules.
Line umpires will be allowed to act as assistant referees, each operating in one half of the pitch, and can raise a flag to bring any instance of foul play to the referee's attention. The experimental rules will be monitored closely in the coming weeks, with the results from the Higher Education Division One trial likely to shape the future of competitive hurling.
IrishTimesSport
The42_ie:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
GAA Hurling Rule Changes Free-Take Handpass Advantage Rule GAA Hurling Experimental Rule Changes Higher Education Division One Black Card Puck-Out Rules
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