An ex-GAA referee said players would face assault charges for match scuffles if they happened on the street.
Clare man Rory Hickey, who retired before the pandemic, alleged some people think it’s OK to attack members of the opposing team or match officials.
The 45-year-old said he was happy that the GAA has begun to take appropriate action against culprits.
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The top official made the comments after players at two Dublin-based clubs were slapped with lengthy bans after an umpire was allegedly attacked during an under-18s hurling game.
The game between Cabra’s Naomh Fionnbarra and Ringsend-based club Clanna Gael Fontenoy was abandoned after the alleged assault on March 5 at Sean Moore Park.
Yesterday RTE Sport reported that two Naomh Fionnbarra players were given 48-week bans by the Dublin County Board while another had his reduced to 12 weeks following an appeal.
Another person was banned from all GAA activity for 96 weeks. The club was also given a large fine.
One player from Clanna Gael Fontenoy was also slapped with an eight-week ban and the Ringsend-based club received a smaller fine. At the time, Naomh Fionnbarra said the two adults involved in a fracas had never been members of the club.
The injured official is set to return to the sidelines this weekend.
Mr Hickey told The Irish Mirror: "How many times would you have heard about something happening in your own county and that would be the end of it because it would have been swept under the carpet. That went on for a very, very long time.
"If that happened in the main street, you’d be in front of a judge facing an assault charge.
"But there seems to be this mindset among people that it is OK to do it out on a GAA field to another player or in this case to the match official."
Mr Hickey said he was never personally attacked but recalled how one player got into his face after he wasn’t happy with a decision.
He added: "I’m glad to see these guys got suspended, it’s only the way forward, and hopefully the mindset changes … it’s becoming harder to be a GAA referee."
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