Could this rule make the whole world of hurling crumble?
GAA fans got a chance to have a look at the new hurling penalty rules over the weekend and it was a fairly mixed response.
Two penalties in the Walsh Cup clash between Antrim and DIT were saved, while, in the Waterford Crystal Cup, Seamus Callanan,who had two penalties saved in the All-Ireland hurling final, also saw his effort saved by the Mary I goalkeeper.
Callan also missed on Sunday in a charity game against Wexford. This led Hurling 2020 Review chairman Liam Sheedy to have dig at outspoken opponent of the new rule Cyril Farrell on Twitter
Seamie Callanan 1 v 1 penalty saved by Wexford Keeper today… What do ya think of that Cyril Farrell??
— Liam Sheedy (@LiamLsheedy) January 11, 2015
Well, the Galway man has hit back saying that the new way of taking penalties with just the goalkeeper on the line is the ‘greatest rule change in GAA history’.
Farrell made the comments on RTE Radio One’s Drivetime show on Monday, as he chatted to Greg Allen. He believes the reason that Callanan and other players missed over the weekend is down to the wintery conditions for hurling at present.
The  two-time All-Ireland winner as a manager with Galway feels the GAA are wrong to have reacted to the so called ‘Anthony Nash penalty’ and believes they have gone too far the other way
‘This rule was brought in as a reaction,first of all to Anthony Nash taking the penalty, he was throwing it far and connecting with it which is an art of itself and it might have been dangerous. So they reacted to that and take the strike outside of the 21 and now because they weren’t scoring enough they reacted again have made it one to one.’
Farrell feels that the only way that a goalkeeper will have any chance of stopping penalties such as Callanan’s, which fly at over 100mph, is with their bodies, as the ball will travel so fast from the 21 if struck correctly,
‘To me if its hit right it wont be blocked unless it hits you. Most goalies will be delighted because if you block it you’re considered a hero and if you don’t you would have been expected to let it in anyway.’
The reaction to the new hurling rule has been mixed, with many goalkeepers in favour of making the penalty a straight contest between striker and the man between the posts. However, the well known pundit feels that the advantage is too much with the attacker and that the rule change will have a devastating effect on hurling:
‘It’s reactive rather than proactive to a situation that was there. If it’s brought in and it looks like it will be it will be the biggest rule change in the history of the GAA. It will put terrible pressure on referees,its going to be a very big call for them on penalties. Penalties will be scored,they’re all saything they won’t be but they will.’
It should be very interesting to see if any Sheedy will respond to the latest comment from Farrell or who will unlock the secret to scoring under the new rule.
You can listen to the interview here on the RTE Player website at 28 minutes in.
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