Conal Keaney reckons that, at the moment, club hurling is being refereed in a much stricter, by the book fashion than its inter-county counterpart.
This inconsistency, the former Dublin player says, is leading to confusion among players and managers and ultimately, a more stop-start, card-dominated game.
Keaney retired from the inter-county game this off-season but at 38, is still lining out for the Ballyboden St Enda's senior hurling team. Having watched and enjoyed the pair of All-Ireland semi-finals at the weekend, Keaney says the leniency and 'let the game flow' mantra adopted by Fergal Horgan and John Keenan is nowhere to be seen when it comes to club hurling.
"The few club games I'm playing at the minute...it's light years away from the two semi-finals. Every little thing is pulled up. Not a chance does it flow like the inter-county game," The GAA Hour pundit says.
"Look, it depends on the referee and maybe this is the standard of referee in Dublin, but every little thing is pulled up, there are yellow cards flashed for everything. Like, take what we seen in the semi-finals - there's no freedom, there's no such advantages played (in club GAA).
"If a player is tackled heavily," says Keaney, "it's always just blown up straight away, no advantage given and then a yellow card. It's never do you know a little word like 'take it easy, next time you're in bother.' It's a straight up yellow which is leading to reds."
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With the levels of preparation and physicality continually improving in the club game, Keaney says it's difficult for club hurlers to know what to expect, especially when they've just watched a game on television being refereed in a much looser fashion.
"Club teams are trying to bring that physicality to the game and that intensity of an inter-county game - okay, sometimes you might miss a tackle or come in late (and you deserve to get penalised in that case...) but at least they're trying to do it.
"I just think they really need to look at it (the standard of officiating) to make sure they level it across the playing field. I mean, if there was ten yellow cards flashed at the weekend, there would be uproar. Yet it's grand to do that at a different level, I don't think it is."
