With Clare captain Seán McMahon becoming the latest high-profile player to see red in a big match, the GAA's Games Administration Committee is to request a further ruling from Central Council on the use of video evidence.

McMahon's fate may well be sealed by the report of referee Aodan MacSuibhne, but on the general issue of overriding a match referee's decision, GAC chair Tony O'Keeffe believes further clarification is needed.

"We need to clarify the status of the referee's report. According to the rules the referee's report is final. I want Central Council to state that one way or the other so that counties themselves will know that we have the full backing of Central Council to intervene when considered appropriate."

This will come as a surprise to many given that Central Council did pass a recommendation last August allowing the GAC to do just that. But when O'Keeffe's new committee considered the video of Kilkenny's NHL match with Tipperary, the old reluctance to interfere with a referee's decision (or in one case, indecision) was resurrected.

"It was a major plank in the argument used by Tipperary and Kilkenny," said O'Keeffe, "and eventually was accepted by the committee."

In those circumstances O'Keeffe obviously feels that the issue needs to be restated in blunt terms in order to prevent what is, from a disciplinary point of view, a self-defeating precedent.

"Where a referee sees an incident and takes action, Central Council should say that GAC can overrule the referee," according to O'Keeffe. "The kernel of the situation is that this needs to be spelled out."

Tyrone's Gavin Devlin has been charged on the basis of video footage taken at the NFL final earlier this month. Devlin is seen standing on Laois's Colm Parkinson and receiving a yellow card from Michael Collins.

An offer to hear his case last Saturday was turned down but the matter may yet go ahead this weekend, though Tyrone's Ulster championship replay with Derry is fixed for Saturday afternoon.

"I think it will have to go ahead," said O'Keeffe. "I know the replay has been fixed for that afternoon but GAC has been very fair in allowing the player to play last weekend in the first match but we are conscious that we have to be fair to everyone involved, including Derry."

O'Keeffe is aware of the wider implications of using video evidence to correct refereeing decisions, either to exonerate or incriminate players. Should the GAC remit extend beyond highlighted incidents to everything that happens in all matches?

"If there are 20,000 in Páirc Uí Chaoimh and 200,000 watching on the television who are the opinion makers? Those watching TV. They are the ones who get to see the incident more than once and from different angles. Television gives a global view on disciplinary matters. It's almost a trans-world system and accepted as that in soccer and rugby.

"But as a consequence of any Central Council ruling does the GAC watch videos of all matches? Given that there are nine members of the committee from all around the country there is no way in the wide earthly world that we can sit down and do that on a weekly basis."

He has also considered the question of players with good disciplinary records having that taken into account as mitigation but feels that it is impractical as the rules are currently enforced.

"The difficulty with taking into account good behaviour is that there are automatic minimum suspensions for offences cited in a referee's report. A relevant committee can impose suspensions greater than the minimum but in practice the minimum is always applied."

Another matter sometimes raised is the very broad provision on striking with the hurl. The rules specify a three-month suspension. But the offence ranges from jabbing with the butt to wrapping the stick around someone's head.

O'Keeffe believes this is a rule-changing matter for congress: "Most hurling counties will tell you that there are degrees of severity in the context of striking. But they have yet to make that case at Congress."