The sin bin isn’t deterring fouls – so what’s the point?

From Kerry’s perspective, the most frustrating thing about last Sunday’s All-Ireland final is that they didn’t put forward their best version of themselves. They have been electrifying at times this season but, for whatever reason, they looked a bit out of sorts against Dublin.

During the opening exchanges they really struggled to pin down the excellent Hannah Tyrrell, who kicked eight of the Dubs’ 11 first-half points. Contrary to some viral tweets, Tyrrell didn’t give birth to the seven-weekold baby she cradled in her arms at full-time – the credit there goes to her wife – but her performance was still incredible.

Going the other way, Kerry never got rolling offensively. They prefer to move the ball at pace, and they have the speed and skills to get from one end of the field to the other with real efficiency, but Dublin never allowed that to happen. Mick Bohan’s side were clearly well drilled and they frequently engaged in tactical fouling to slow Kerry down. Stopping their opponents’ momentum gave them the opportunity to retreat and get their shape. When Kerry did attack, they invariably ran into a brick wall and wound up turning the ball over far too often.

Some of this was simply down to bad decision-making – either by not avoiding contact or by attempting passes that weren’t on – and the players will take ownership for those errors.

But it would be remiss of any reporter to overlook Dublin’s foul count in this game and also in the games preceding it. The eventual champions had 26 fouls to Kerry’s 14 in the final. In the semi-final they had 35 fouls to Cork’s 13. And in the quarter-final they had 30 fouls to Donegal’s 13 (stats via @GaelicStatsman on Twitter).

Over a three-match period, Dublin committed 91 fouls – over 30 fouls per game – while their opponents committed just 40 fouls between them (13.3 fouls per game). That’s a massive discrepancy.

For further context, teams in the men’s All-Ireland series committed an average of 14.4 fouls per game. Armagh v Monaghan was the match with the most fouls (38 in total, 19 per team). And that match went to extra time. A foul count of 30-plus for one team in one match isn’t at all common anywhere.

You might expect Dublin’s abnormal foul count to be reflected, at least to some extent, in their card count, but that wasn’t the case. Just one of their

91 fouls resulted in a yellow card. Eilísh O’Dowd was booked – and sinbinned - for pulling back an opponent with 11 minutes to go against Cork with the referee indicating that it was her third such infraction.

The official LGFA guide states that “repetition” of fouls like pushing or holding “shall constitute a yellow card offence”. It doesn’t state that three fouls equals a yellow. By definition, repetition means doing something again. But refs, players and coaches operate under the assumption that three is the magic number. Incidentally, the GAA rule book is less ambiguous. It says that offenders should be cautioned for committing this kind of foul a second time.

Whatever the official wording, it’s clear that men’s and women’s referees treat yellow cards very differently – even beyond the two/three-foul distinction. In the men’s All-Ireland series, a yellow card was issued once every 4.7 fouls. Meanwhile, in the women’s series, a yellow card was issued once every 72.8 fouls. Obviously, the major difference between yellows in men’s and women’s football is the punishment that follows. Men can stay on the pitch. Women go to the sin bin for ten minutes. Do we see fewer yellow cards in ladies’ football because referees are less inclined to effectively send a player off – even temporarily – for minor infringements like holding or pushing?

When it comes down to it, cards are there to discourage players from fouling again. Therefore, it stands to reason that reluctance to issue cards leads to more fouls, which perhaps explains why a team like Dublin can effectively get away with committing over 30 fouls per game.

The sin bin rule, which was brought in as a deterrent to prevent foul play, may actually be deterring referees from punishing foul play. You have to wonder if ladies’ football would be better off without it.

With regards to this year’s final, Kerry can have no major complaints about the result. Dublin were the better side on the day and they deserved to win.

But if a team can consistently commit such a high number of fouls, go largely unpunished, and wind up as All-Ireland champions, it sets a negative precedent - and it also suggests that there might be something wrong with the laws of the game.