Liam Sheedy has called for an extra marking to be added on a hurling pitch to help officials decide if a player has been denied a clear goal scoring opportunity. The marking would be 25m in from the sideline between the 20m line and the endline.
In the 70th minute of Saturday's second All-Ireland hurling quarter-final, Clare's Cian Nolan hauled down Wexford's Lee Chin as he attempted to race through on goal. Wexford were three points down at that stage.
On commentary, Michael Duignan suggested Nolan should have been shown a black card, and Wexford awarded a penalty. However, this was not the case. Nolan was shown a yellow card by Colm Lyons, and Wexford were given a free.
"The referees and umpires are asked to visualise a line 25 metres in from the sideline," Sheedy said on The Sunday Game.
"The referees have a really tough job and they've an awful lot going on.
"If you've a line [drawn] that's 25 metres in from the sideline, that clearly tells the referee. Lee Chin was either inside or outside the line.
"The referee moved the ball back out. I wonder was that at play there? Rather than having an imaginary line, and guesswork, why not put in an actual line and give you certainty?
"It's a benefit to the players and the referee and the umpire. In two weeks' time, in the All-Ireland semi-finals, why not have that line in? And if you do what happened [on Saturday], it's a black card and a penalty."
Dónal Óg Cusack: "You don't want professional fouls being rewarded."
The former Cork goalkeeper isn't the only member of the panel with strong views on this late incident during Clare's win over Wexford. #RTEGAA #TheSundayGame
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Ursula Jacob and Donal Óg Cusack agreed with Sheedy.
"It creates that consistency across the board. It's there for the four remaining teams in the championship," said Jacob.
Cusack added: "I think it was a clear goal scoring opportunity [for Lee Chin]. It was a perfect example as to why this rule was brought in. It was a really good rule. You don't want professional fouls being rewarded. Ultimately, that's what happened.
"It's like as if for some reason that's been forgotten. When it came in first day, it was for the right reasons. It definitely acted as a deterrent for defenders. We showed loads of examples over the last few years of where they would have pulled players down, but it hasn't happened.
"There's no reason why we can't line it to help referees and bring consistency which is what everybody wants in the game."
See Also: Three Weeks Before Munster Hurling Final Were 'Difficult' For Hegarty
