Referees chief Willie Barrett is in favour of cynical play being punished by a 20-metre free. Gavin believes the free against three defenders on the goal-line would deter teams from making professional fouls. What those fouls are exactly will have to be determined, but they could be similar to the black card infringements in Gaelic football such as drag downs, trips and deliberate body checks. “Personally, I certainly wouldn’t be for a black card but maybe in terms of punishing cynical fouls there could be a free puck in an advantageous position in terms of scoring. What would also have to be decided is where on the field does a cynical foul warrant a 20m free and how many defenders can be permitted on the goal-line.

Source: Irish Examiner July 16, 2019 04:07 UTC