THERE will be no marks for the mark according to Tir Chonaill boss Rory Gallagher.
Donegal may have one of the top fielders in the country in one Neil Gallagher and the Glenswilly giant has pulled off some really crucial catches for his county over the past few years. On that basis, you would imagine Gallagher would be keen to use this obvious asset at a time when clean possession is so vital and so relatively scarce.
But on Tuesday, Gallagher said he did not see any real merit in the new proposal successfully piloted through by Jarlath Burns at congress: “Don’t get me wrong," he said.
“I love to see some high fielding and it is one of the great skills of our game and I know that some players can be surrounded when they come down to ground. But I just feel it is simply rewarding a team that has a really tall player and there is not an awful lot of skill in that.
“Yes, I am disappointed that it will be coming into force soon. One of the big complaints about our game is the amount of stoppages we have. I have not doubt but that this will only add to the stoppages. It will simply reward people who are tall and I don’t think we should be rewarding that and it is unfair to smaller and maybe even more skillful players who are cut out."
Gallagher acknowledged that, in Neil Gallagher, Donegal have a great high fielder, but that does not influence him in any fashion. And he is not happy with the way the GAA have embraced the concept so swiftly.
Aidan O'Shea one of the tallest and best fielders in the country has already called for a “trial period” to see how it affects the game: “I don’t think there is an awful lot wrong with our game," Gallagher added.
“Okay, there has been a lot of defensive stuff, but this mark will make matters even more defensive. It will put a fear in some teams of an opposition that has big men in and around the middle of the field. That will force more and more teams to play the short game inside their own 45 because possession is everything and that defeats the whole purpose of the mark, which is to reward an ancient skill and speed up the game”.
Gallagher added that recent stats showed teams were attacking a lot more: “Look at the Monaghan and Mayo match, Roscommon and Cork and our game with Mayo.
"The emphasis certainly was on getting more scores on the board than the opposition. Any time we play Kerry, it tends to be a very high scoring affair as both counties like to play traditional football and it will be no different on Sunday.
“There seems to be an idea that we constantly need to change our game, but I think there is not a lot wrong with it as it is. And I don’t believe the introduction of the mark will add much more to a really fine game already."
