Ah Rag, that's a bloody disgrace.
They need to change something there. If they actually want a football match (which I think they should, as it works pretty well in some respects), then one of a few things needs to happen.
1) Rules need to be changed and enforced. I remember one match a few years ago, the Gooch was scoring all our points ( a skinny fellow, very skilled footballer from Kerry) SO SOME HUGE MINDLESS MORON JUST WENT OVER AND DECKED HIM in front of the ref. (Sorry, caps slipped). REf sends him off...
and according to the rules, you can sub on another player for one who has a red card, making it meaningless, and geared towards this style of 'game'.
or 2) our lads quit faqing about and go professional. They'd be on a par with the aussies physically, then. An amateur can not compete in a physical game with a pro. It just doesn't work on any level.
or 3) make GAA more physical, including in it a tackle alla rugby, and possible the mark. However, this would compromise the running in the game.
or 4) forget the sport and sportsmanship. Pick a team of convicts released for the match, streetfighters, and watch 30 idiots killing each other for 70 minutes or what have you. But in this case, forget the sport, and the international sportsmanship which this event was supposed to represent.
A few years ago we had beaten the aussies badly for several years running, and the were talking about knocking it on the head as there was no competition. Now we see this nonsense every year. It's a joke.