RTE viewers split over Hannah Looney's red card as some argue foe ‘stayed down like she was knocked out by Mike Tyson'
HANNAH Looney's red card on the stroke of half-time of the All-Ireland camogie final stirred a heated debate amongst viewers.
The Rebels ace was given her marching orders after lashing out at Carrie Dolan. It should be noted that the latter had initially barged her in the back.
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Looney shed tears as she made her way off the pitch
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Footage of the incident is below so you can make up your own mind
Credit: @TheSundayGame
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Captain Dolan was the hero as she nailed a late sideline free to win the decider 1-14 to 1-13
So while Looney was foolish to react in such a manner, there was considerable sympathy from some corners especially since Dolan looked to make the most of the contact.
The underdogs were already leading 1-9 to 0-7 at the time so while it might've proved to be Galway's day without the flashpoint working in their favour, that didn't stop a lot of viewers expressing their dismay.
JJ moaned: "Carrie Dolan stayed down like she was knocked out by Mike Tyson."
Jamie agreed, adding: "Cheap shot from behind and then she folded like a deck chair as soon as there was contact back.
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Lastly Eddie vented: "She got a raw deal to be sent off- a push in the shoulder."
It wasn't one-way traffic though as many people fell on the other side of the debate.
Mary spoke up: "Red card all day, some of the tackles by Cork in the 2nd half would have been more at home in Thomond Park."
Randall also felt Looney could have no complaints by the letter of the law.
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He commented: "Poor decision making, lost her head and let the team down badly. Strike an opponent into the head - straight red. Mitigating circumstances (barge) don't matter."
Finally someone else chipped in: "Proper order for her. Strike an opponent as blatantly as that, off you go."
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Her manager Ger Manley didn't mince his words after their dogged comeback effort was undone by Dolan's last-gasp sideline free.
He blasted referee Justin Heffernan for what he felt was a 'very poor' performance throughout.
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Manley fumed: 'The decisions that went against us were very disappointing. It's not sour grapes really, I just thought the referee had a very poor match.
'I don't like knocking refs but I thought he had a very poor game. I know it's a tough game but some of the decisions that went against us, it seemed to be one rule for one team and another rule for the next.'
'VERY HARSH'
Looney's dismissal for an off-the-ball clash with Dolan, as well as Kate Wall's foul that handed Dolan a late winning free, were both 'very harsh' decisions, according to Manley.
The Cork gaffer reckoned Clodagh Finn should have been awarded a free in the closing stages, while also bemoaning the amount of additional time played.
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However, he was particularly irked by Heffernan's failure to spot a foul on Cork goalkeeper Amy Lee that led to a first-half point for Caoimhe Kelly.
Manley said: "In a tight game like that, small things win matches. Anyone who saw the push on Amy Lee, we'd nearly need to be looking for VAR.
"If that was in a soccer match, it would have been cancelled out. We have honest players and she didn't dive. She was blatantly pushed. You could see it on the screen."
Facing a five-point deficit at the interval, Manley's side drew level in the final minute of normal time through an Orlaith Cahalane goal. However, Dolan's free gave Galway their first O'Duffy Cup since 2021.
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