In the least surprising GAA news of the year, Loughrea’s Johnny Maher has been banned for his crazy Galway Hurling final violence. How long did he get?
Even now, two-and-a-half weeks on from the game, Johnny Maher’s minute of madness in the Galway Hurling final is still kind of shocking. The Loughrea man was in the sort of red mist that usually leads to an immediate red card but even after tangling with three St Thomas players, he escaped sanction on the pitch.
Funnily enough, after the video went viral online, he didn’t escape sanction off it. Last night the big full forward was hit with an eight-week ban for his actions, according to today’s Irish Examiner.
Some might say he got off lightly but following the publicity surrounding his actions Maher is sure to be a marked man by referees for the rest of his playing career. That might, as they say, soften his cough.
