stampy wrote:jackpot jim wrote:mal wrote:
The Umpires over umpiring over technical decisions have ruined this qtr
Anyone who saw this qtr witnessed a demise in Australian Rules football
MAL - The umpires and more importantly, Geishen & the rules committee F****D Aussie rules years ago and thats why i watch very little of it these days.
agree 100% with your sentiments JJ i dont watch much afl purely cos the umpires ruin it with their interpretations, a guy can be tackled with the ball and spun 360 degrees yet its called play on whereas another bloke gets set upon by 3 opposition players with absolutely no chance of disposing of the ball and he gets pinged - i am getting pissed off just thinking about how they have ruined the game as i type

The diving on the ball and then not hitting it out holding the ball rule is all about keeping the game MOVING. As is the play on immediatley when a behind is kicked. As is the free kick play on
advantage rule. All these rules are about 'Keeping the game moving'.
I think most people can live with that rationale
So the question i ask is if it's all about keeping the play moving, why is play HELD UP after each goal until the commercials have finished on telly ???
Answer - Bcos it suits the AFL and TV stations ie. All to with $$$$$$
Question - Why is the ball still being bounced by umpires to restart play?
All it does is create UNFAIR contests (Refer to Shaun Rehns aricle in todays mail) and when it is too far off centre, it is RECALLED (time wasting , something the AFL are doing everything to avoid) and then the ball in THROWN UP by the ump to avoid the embarrassment of F#####g up twice in a row. What a joke !!!!!
When Andrew, Adrian & Jeff are asked about throwing the ball up, they all roll out the same line about the bounce is UNIQUE to Aussie rules and would be a shame to lose it and also it is one of a few UNIQUE SKILLS required by the umpire to showcase their talents.
What a total load of crap. They seem to tend to forget the game is about the Players and the Fans and NOT the umpires.
But i suppose as long as there are commentators like Brian Taylor who continue to pump up the status of umpires like Razor Ray Chamberlain, then they will continue to be made to feel as much a part of the spectacle as the players.