..AND TURLOUGH’S ‘GOBSMACKED’ BY RADICAL PLANS TO IMPROVE GAME

CARLOW boss Turlough O’brien says he’s “gobsmacked” by the “restrictive” rules that are being floated for next year’s League.

Although there is to be further consultation which could see the proposed rules watered down or thrown out, for now it is hoped they will trialled in the 2019 League. “I am gobsmacked by the new rules,” O’brien (right) told Sky Sports. “I’m stunned at the number of rules they’re putting forward for a start, and that some of them are so unrealistic, I can’t understand why they’ve done it.

“They’re saying, ‘You’ve got to play a certain way, and the way is simple; 1940s, catch and kick, and wear your flat cap’.

“I think the game today, there are issues but none of these are dealing with it. I mean the biggest issue in the game for me is the tackle, and there’s no mention of it anywhere. They haven’t addressed it. As a result, we end up with all of these controversial black cards.”

He added: “We’re going to go to sin bins, which I’ve no problem with. But the sin bin for two yellows now is extraordinary, considering it was a red card offence previous to this, and now you’re going to reward these people by letting them back into the game. That seems like an anomaly straight away.

“And this unbelievably bizarre idea to restrict the kick-outs to two vs two in the middle third of the field is just, I don’t know where they’re coming from with that.”