The Games Administration Committee of the GAA will today decide who will referee the replay of the Ulster first-round clash between Derry and Cavan at Breffni Park next Sunday.

In normal circumstances the referee in a drawn match takes charge of the replay but, on this occasion, Michael McGrath from Donegal, who refereed last Sunday's game, has not been named for the replay until the GAC meets to discuss the matter.

The match ended in a draw with a point from Joe Brolly in the last minute of a six-minute period of time added on for what the referee regarded as time lost through injury or other delays. Earlier McGrath had awarded Cavan a penalty which brought them back into the game, a decision which was hotly contested by Derry.

Brolly was among those who were highly critical of the awarding of the penalty, from which Ray Carolan scored a goal in the 68th minute.

This is not the first time this year that refereeing decisions have generated controversy. The championship started with six players being sent off by referee Niall Barrett from Cork in the Westmeath-Carlow Leinster football clash following a mix-up over the interpretation of the new rules on discipline.

A controversial goal was allowed in the Kerry-Tipperary football encounter when television pictures clearly showed that the ball had come back into play off a stanchion and, last Saturday, Dickie Murphy came in for severe criticism for his lenient handling of the Clare-Tipperary hurling replay when a number of incidents went unpunished.

Another subject for debate arising out of the Derry-Cavan draw is the decision to stage the replay at Breffni Park. Originally the match had been fixed for Celtic Park in Derry but that venue is undergoing some refurbishment and the game was switched to Casement Park. When a draw resulted Cavan, well within their rights, claimed that they should have home advantage for the replay and that is what has been decided, not entirely to Derry's liking.

Meanwhile, dates for the International Rules football series in Australia have been fixed. The Test matches will be played in Melbourne on Friday, October 8th, and Adelaide on Friday, October 15th.

Colm O'Rourke (Meath), Mickey Moran (Derry/Sligo) and John O'Keeffe (Kerry) will be in charge of preparation for the games.

Training and selection will start on July 10th and the squad will be named soon after the All-Ireland final. The selectors are hoping that the final will not end in a draw as that would rule out the players from the two counties involved.