Shane McGrath feels Darragh McCarthy's red card against Cork was a warning to him, Tipperary and inter-county hurlers in general that there is a line that can't be crossed in pre-match squaring up to opponents.
The 19-year-old Premier forward was dismissed seconds into yesterday's Munster SHC clash at Páirc Uí Chaoimh - just his second championship appearance - for jabbing his hurley into Cork defender Sean O'Donoghue before throw-in.
Meanwhile, multiple other players were grappling around the pitch, but escaped punishment.
'That's the problem with adrenaline' - the panel assess the incident which saw Darragh McCarthy sent off before throw-in
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While sympathetic to the youngster being singled out, McGrath thinks it was a tough lesson for both him and Liam Cahill's side.
"What Darragh did was wrong and he rightly got punished for it," he told the RTÉ GAA Podcast.
"You can see the striking action. It was a deserved red card. He's a young guy. It will be a big learning for him.
"But it is going on the whole time. Some players are getting caught and some aren't. Darragh just got caught.
"Tipp probably went at it something similar the week before with Limerick, there was a lot of off-the-ball stuff.
"It was very evident what was going on. Lads went in, and you're trying to lay down a marker but laying down a marker and your team going down to 14 are two different things.
"I don’t think it will go on again. I think it’s a massive lesson learned for Tipp."
McGrath believes players and management will now be warier of losing players to excessive pre-match physical posturing.
"It’s going on a long, long time. But lads need to be aware that it is going to be watched out for by the linesman.
"And with them being able to come in so far on the field now, they are going to be able to see it better than before.
"We haven’t seen it in many more matches now [this season]. But it will be a big learning curve for everyone, because now it’s going to be highlighted, no more so than the head-high tackles, which were massively highlighted and don’t seem to be happening as much.
"Absolutely be physical, be aggressive, shake hands, a few shoulders, a few dunts, do what you need to do, but get on with it then."
Tipperary lost by 15 points, having played over 70 minutes with 14 men, and their trip to Clare in two weeks now looks like a must-win game, or at least a must-not-lose game, for both sides if they are to make it out of Munster, having taken one point apiece from their opening two fixtures,
"It’s knockout hurling," he said. "Lose and you're gone.
"The year is on the line. For both sides. Some lads’ inter-county careers. Maybe managers.
"Lads are coming towards the end of inter-county careers. Managers are there for a few years now.
"That’s just the nature of it. I think Brian Lohan has done great things for Clare and Liam Cahill has done great things for Tipp.
"But if someone gets turned over next week and knocked out in the second week of May, could that make decisions for county boards?"
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