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17th October 2024
03:56pm BST
The GAA's latest tinkering with its football rules will be trialled tomorrow and Saturday when the Interprovincial Series makes a return for the first time since 2016 with two semi-finals and a final to be played at Croke Park.
A review committee led by former Dublin footballer and coach Jim Gavin has put forward some of the biggest rule changes that the GAA would’ve ever seen.
A lengthy consultative process has been underway for several months, the result of which are seven significant rules changes which are set to be trialled on 18 and 19 October.
Following the official trialling of the new rules this weekend, a GAA Special Congress will meet on 30 November to discuss whether or not to apply the proposed changes for the 2025 season.
A full review will then take place late next year with a view to the adoption of them in an updated rulebook from 1 January, 2026.
One v One Throw-In
Instead of two sets of players contesting the throw-in, it will now be one set.
The second midfielder on each team will be positioned on the opposite side lines, facing the players contesting the throw-in. Players will then swap sidelines for the 2nd half throw-in.
Advanced Mark 2.0
The ball must be kicked from outside the 45 metre line in open play, and caught cleanly inside the 20 metre line.
Plus, the player may play on after catching the ball until advantage is over. If no advantage comes, they can come back for the mark.
The Goalkeeper
This one is pretty straightforward. Goalkeepers can now only receive a pass on two occasions.
They can receive a pass from player while inside their own box, or they can receive it inside the opposition half.
Solo and Go
This is very similar to what we see in rugby and AFL. If a player is fouled, they may choose - instead of stopping play - to take a solo and continue on with their run.
Three v Three Structure
Hate a blanket defence? This potentially could solve it.
Essentially, this rule requires both sets of teams to keep three players inside each half. So you will never have 15 players behind the ball under this rule proposal.
The Kick-Out
Players no longer need to get out of the 20 metre arc. There's a new 40 metre arc that the ball must travel outside before the opposition can intercept.
Players can remain behind the goalkeeper while kick-out is being taken. The ball cannot come directly back to the goalkeeper from the receiver.
A New Scoring System
Different scores now have different values. A score outside the 40 metre arc is 2 points, a score inside the 40 metre arc or 20 metre arc is 1 point. A score from a 45-set piece is 2 points, while a goal is now worth 4 points.
All four of the interprovincial games will be televised with the two games on the Friday covered by TG4 and the two Saturday fixtures broadcast by RTÉ.
On Friday October 18, Leinster play Connacht in the first semi-final at 6pm which is followed by the meeting of Munster and Ulster at 8pm
The following day will see two more games take place as the two defeated provinces meet at 5.30pm and the winning teams compete against each other at 7.30pm.
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