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Published 17:40 3 Apr 2017 BST
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That’s not to say that the black card should be binned entirely, however.
Its detractors don’t like to admit it, but it has absolutely had a number of positive effects. Any player with even a smidgen of intelligence wouldn’t dream of deliberately blocking the run of an opponent off the ball these days because they know they’d get the punishment they deserve.
And while it would be stretching it to say that the very tackle that inspired the black card in the first place – Sean Cavanagh’s famous rugby tackle on Conor McManus in 2013 – has gone from the game completely, those that are guilty of committing it do so out of desperation or in an effort to waste time and know full well they’ll be walking before the referee even sticks his hand in his pocket.
If the black card in its current form is no longer fit for purpose, then what next?
Colm Parkinson of this parish has long been an advocate of refining the definition of a black card that would leave zero room for interpretation.
Let it apply to offences that, like the Cavanagh tackle on McManus and blatant third man tackles (a tackle by former Mayo player Richie Feeney in the 2014 All-Ireland club final comes to mind), are so obvious that nobody is in any doubt that the black card sanction should apply.
In soccer parlance, for example, they're known as professional fouls and fans of that code can spot them a mile away.
Until something is done, you can virtually guarantee that Darren Hughes, Diarmuid Connolly and others won’t be the last victims of a flawed system that is having a profound effect on games at the highest level and is becoming a weekly stick to beat the GAA with as a result.
What do you think?
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