John Kiely has described a second-half melee involving Limerick and Waterford that saw red and yellow cards issued as "disappointing" and has called on the association to take "appropriate" action.
The All-Ireland champions opened the defence of their provincial title with a below-par, two-point win over the Deise at Semple Stadium having played most of the second half with 14 players following the dismissal of Gearoid Hegarty for a second yellow card.
The 2020 Hurler of the Year was given his marching orders in the 48th minute by referee Liam Gordon in a game that had been bubbling beneath the surface.
Five players – three from Limerick, including Hegarty – were booked in a tense five-minute period prior to the interval, while Seamus Flanagan was fortunate to escape any sanction following a high challenge.
The tipping point came when Hegarty barged Conor Gleeson with a late shoulder, and in a coming together that involved both players and backroom officials, the towering forward appeared to be struck in the chest by a member of the backroom team.
The Galway match official dismissed Hegarty and the Waterford mentor, while Waterford's Calum Lyons was also booked when things calmed down.
Limerick down to 14 men after a second yellow card for Gearóid Hegarty. A fair few being handed out now, including to backroom staff
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Speaking to RTÉ Sport after the match, Kiely offered his thoughts on the flashpoint.
"Whatever about Gearoid and his engagement with the Waterford player, I didn’t see that, so I can’t comment on that, so I’m not going to comment on the yellow card," he said.
"When you are on a yellow, you are always at risk of getting caught with another. We understood hat ourselves at half-time.
"The piece after that was very disappointing and hopefully it will be dealt with accordingly."
His Waterford counterpart Davy Fitzgerald felt the decision was correct, but was keen to stress that he’s hopeful Hegarty won’t be hit with a suspension.
"I’m right there in the thick of it. I didn’t see," he said.
"Let me make this clear. Gearoid Hegarty gets a tough time at times. I don’t think Gearoid is a dirty player? Is it a yellow card? It probably was.
"I hope he gets straight back into action and isn’t banned again. I just didn’t see what was there.
"I’m sure if there is anything wrong it will be dealt with."
Reflecting on the opening round championship defeat, the Clare native felt it was a chance for victory his tema let slip through their fingers.
"I think we had the chances to win it today. If you look at Limerick over the last few years, you don't get many opportunities like that. where you have them on the backfoot.
"When they went down to 14, I felt we lost our shape a small bit."
Limerick now have a six-day turnaround to their round two fixture away to Clare.
Kiely says that while there is much to work on based on their second-half display, he is "delighted" to get the win on the board and the resilience shown after the numerical disadvantage.
"You could tell from the game itself, it was full of tension, full of nervousness from both sides.
"I think we coped well with the sending off. If ever there was a team you didn't want to go down to 14 men against, it’s against a mobile, running team like Waterford.
"I’m delighted with our lads. We know we are better than that. We know we will have to be better next Saturday evening."
