Sligo Referee's Boycott Threat

By Donnchadh Boyle

SLIGO GAA chiefs are facing the prospect of having their referees 'withdraw their services' from all adult competitions from this Friday after one of the county's top stars had his red card controversially rescinded last week.
St Mary's player Mark Breheny was sent off on a straight red card in a club championship match against Tourlestrane and had been given a proposed four-week suspension by the county's Competitions Control Committee on the back of the referee's report.
However, that ban was lifted by Sligo's Hearings Committee on appeal last week, clearing the way for Breheny to play in last Saturday's SFC quarter-final against Coolera/Strandhill.
The county's referees are furious at the decision to overturn the suspension. There was no video evidence to exonerate Breheny, and it isn't clear on what grounds the player was cleared.
Sligo's executive met for a hastily convened meeting on Friday night to seek clarification on the decision to rescind the red card and how it was made, though Breheny's eligibility to play that weekend remained unaffected.
On Sunday night, the county's referees met and decided unanimously to withdraw their services from this Friday should the county's top brass not take what has been termed as 'appropriate action'.
As St Mary's lost their quarter-final, reinstating the suspension would have little effect.
But the referees present at the meeting in Tubbercurry were adamant that they would follow through on their threat to withdraw their services, which applies to both hurling and football competitions, if the issue was not resolved to their satisfaction. It is not clear exactly that that would consist of.
However, hope was building late last night that the impasse could be resolved before Friday's deadline as members of the county's executive met with officials from the Hearings Committee.
- Donnchadh Boyle

Irish Independent

Has shades of a similar event last year in the Kildare Senior Championship only the Ref's didn't threaten to boycott matches...

While on about Referee's, got it from a source in Meath, the umpire that originally awarded and waved the flag for Tomàs O'Connor's goal against Donegal has stepped down from David Coldricks team. Apparently he has taken some flack over it as he was overruled by Coldricks and disallow the goal. It's a bit late now!!!

I heard a rumour last week that killcullen had a straight red card suspension swept under the carpet so one of there players could play in celebrity bainisteor... Does any one know if it's true? Heard he called the ref a wanker after final whistle got a red card and got off..

I heard the refs had a meeting and decided that the Kilcullen player at that particular time had a fair point which would have mitigated his use of fowl language. They decided to recind the red card in favour of an apology

johnsmyth wrote:

I heard the refs had a meeting and decided that the Kilcullen player at that particular time had a fair point which would have mitigated his use of fowl language. They decided to recind the red card in favour of an apology

Sound's strange???

Yea Coldrick's umpire from our match against Donegal quit alright, saw it on the Hoganstand website. Infairness to him though he waved the green flag but Coldrick overruled him anyway so I could understand his frustration then if people were blaming him for Coldrick's mistake.

So the 'fair point' that the Kilcullen player had was that the referee was in fact... a wanker?

Thats hilarious...

Another kick in the bollox for Kildare.Coldrick has been appointed as reserve referee and linesman for AllIreland Senior final.The only sport in the world where you fcuk up and actually get rewarded. . They are so out of touch with the real world that you can only laugh

johnsmyth wrote:

I heard the refs had a meeting and decided that the Kilcullen player at that particular time had a fair point which would have mitigated his use of fowl language. They decided to recind the red card in favour of an apology

does that not leave a very big window for other appeals. if a player is punched well it would be a fair point to punch the offender back. that is the biggest load of politics if you ask me. alot of guys who served suspensions over the years must be pretty sick hearing this. that guy lesson from robertstown missed the junior final last year after the player in which he allegedly stamped on went to the appeal meeting to back lesson and confirm that here was nothing in the challenge. co board refused his appeal and he missed his clubs biggest day of the year.

The CCC or whatever they want to call themselves here in Kildare are a joke - coupled with the appointment of referees. Alan Barry assaulted a Larries player in the semi final last year and rightly got a straight red for it. He had the neck to appeal it and the idiots in the white tower in Newbridge upheld the appeal and overturned the suspension despite the fact there was video evidence to prove what he did.

That Roberstown case last year was another typical example. As was the case where the young guy in Two Mile House was falsely accused by a 'referee' of headbutting. Despite numerous Grange players willing to testify on his behalf that he didnt headbutt.

This current Kildare countyboard is full of jumped up little men who think they are above everybody and everything else.

FuturesWhite wrote:

The CCC or whatever they want to call themselves here in Kildare are a joke - coupled with the appointment of referees. Alan Barry assaulted a Larries player in the semi final last year and rightly got a straight red for it. He had the neck to appeal it and the idiots in the white tower in Newbridge upheld the appeal and overturned the suspension despite the fact there was video evidence to prove what he did.

That Roberstown case last year was another typical example. As was the case where the young guy in Two Mile House was falsely accused by a 'referee' of headbutting. Despite numerous Grange players willing to testify on his behalf that he didnt headbutt.

This current Kildare countyboard is full of jumped up little men who think they are above everybody and everything else.

Pull no punches FW..... Ouch. Who stood on your toes... lol

futureswhite, thing your blaming the wrong committee, kildare CCC only hand out the suspenions, they do not over turn them. there's a appeals committee who hear all appeals and decide if the should be overturned or not............ this committee is chaired by ex county board chairman andrew o' sullivan and consists of various people from different clubs around the county who have served on different committees within there club and on county board committees. CCC have no input with this committee.

Why is there such a difference in the approach taken by referees in football compared to hurling?

Obviously they are different sports, but hurling referees seem to employ a degree of common sense which is sorely lacking in their football counterparts. The referee in the match today only seemed to find his whistle when someone's head was in danger of being taken off. If that had have been a football referee, three or four lads would have been shown the line.

Agree Kickingking, there was a Kilkenny player driving forward yesterday yet was accosted around the neck , but he kept driving forward so strongly that Tipp players hurley went flying out of his arms after nearly strangling the Killkenny player in possession the ref said play on, ball broke loose and Tipp stole down for a point.
It was a blatant free, but overall the ref let the game flow and the best team won by far, the four point winning margin flattered Tipp, totally outplayed in nearly every sector.

I'm no great fan of referees, been a Moorefield fan you almost get use to playing 16 men, just because you win more than most the refs just can't help themsleves and their natural prejudices often surface.
But I do have a degree of sympathy when they make a correct call and those idiots who made the rules in the first place overrule them, watch this space! don't we know Diarmuid Connollys red card will be rescinded, even though the rules quite clearly say if you strike or even make a striking gesture an automatic red card and automatic suspension.
A joke of an organisation still stuck in the 19th century!.

Footnote: when I think about it this strike in Sligo might actually scupper the chances of Connolly playing in the final?, to discredited the ref again when its already in the media spotlight leaves them wide open.

I was at the game in question and it’s a disgrace that the Kilcullen player got away with the red card. He deserved about 3 red cards during the game (mainly for off the ball stuff) but when the ref did eventually have reason to send him off he was fully within his rights to do so. The player was also available for the next 2 rounds of the championship so it wasn’t just for Celebrity Bainisteoir that he got the pardon.

I must admit however I did take great enjoyment out of his reaction to the sending off….after sneaky kicks and digs at everything that ran past him, when he was eventually sent off he burst into tears stomped off the field only to shout more abuse at the Kilcullen management team that were trying to console him…very manly and grown up.

In the end his team were better off without him as they turned a loosing position when he was sent to the line into a winning one in the 15 minutes left in the game.

johnsmyth wrote:

I heard the refs had a meeting and decided that the Kilcullen player at that particular time had a fair point which would have mitigated his use of fowl language. They decided to recind the red card in favour of an apology

I thought it was clear enough that I was'nt serious with this post, since when do refs apologise and admit to been w**kers

johnsmyth wrote:

johnsmyth wrote:

I heard the refs had a meeting and decided that the Kilcullen player at that particular time had a fair point which would have mitigated his use of fowl language. They decided to recind the red card in favour of an apology

I thought it was clear enough that I was'nt serious with this post, since when do refs apologise and admit to been w**kers

Who stood on your toes or should I say what referee stood on your toes johnsmith.....

Coldrick, O Reilly, Mcaneeney these are the standard setting refs of our time and should be idols for all aspiring refs countrywide. I know your a ref BFB and I never had any (major) personel issues locally if thats what your thinking.
I think when the national head of referees comes out and fully backs the likes of O Reillys decision against Dublin then I'm entitled to have a laugh(I did'nt laugh at the time) and make little of this Kilcullen issue, of which I know nothing about. As a ref you are right to be defensive, my opinion on discipline coucils and refereeing over the past couple of years has spiralled to a point where I'd prefer to laugh at it.