Gearóid Hegarty is completely against VAR or any such video technology being introduced to hurling.The Limerick forward – who confirmed he will be returning to play for the county in 2027 – believes any such move would damage the small-ball code in a similar way to how soccer has been affected by the technology. “I might get stick for this, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with hurling. I’d hate for us to go down the VAR route. I heard talks about bringing in VAR and all this rubbish – I would hate that,” he says. “I used to be one of the biggest soccer fans ever, I’m a Liverpool supporter. “I could watch Crystal Palace against Everton on a Saturday morning or Sunday afternoon but since they brought in VAR, I find it hard to even watch Liverpool matches nowadays. I think it’s absolutely ruined the game.“The spontaneity has gone, nobody celebrates a goal anymore because they have to wait for the VAR check. I think it has completely ruined the game. It’s a brutal watch nowadays. It has slowed everything down. “The emotion and the atmosphere haven’t gone completely, but they’ve gone way down because of bringing in this technology.”Hegarty feels the speed of hurling would also make it unworkable.“Imagine somebody sitting in a room trying to nitpick all the different things in one hurling match, it’s just too fast,” he adds.“Personally, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with hurling. I think hurling is in an unbelievable place, there have been three different All-Ireland winners over the last three years. “Look at how competitive Leinster was this year, look at how competitive Munster always is.“There’s always room for improvement in every sport but I’d hate for anything drastic to come in. I think it would be a bad call.”Former Cork, Wexford and Kerry manager John Meyler is chairman of the Hurling Advisory Committee and they continue to examine areas where the game might be improved.There have been suggestions by some outside of that committee that four teams – rather than three – should emerge from the Munster championship. But this is not something Hegarty would be in favour of either.“I don’t know if there’s a structure that everybody will be happy with, I just think there’s nothing that can be done to keep everybody happy,” he says.“I’ve heard the argument about the teams knocked out of Munster. But I’d always say this – you play four games in Munster, there are only five teams and three come out.“Sixty per cent of the teams come out of Munster, fifty per cent come out of Leinster.“If you’re not good enough to finish in the top three out of a group of five, well then, tough. Simple as that.“And look, it may happen to us one day. Maybe it will. If it does, I won’t mince my words either. That’s just the way I feel about it.”Gearóid Hegarty has been named PwC Hurler of the Month for July. Galway’s Ciara Hickey won the camogie accolade, Kerry’s Síofra O’Shea claimed the women’s football award while Mayo’s Ryan O’Donoghue was named men’s Footballer of the Month.