Reckon its about time we had a thread where we could list all the umpiring feedback and questions about the AFL Victorian fluro orange maggots.
I'm going to start things off - can anyone tell me why umpires push their arms in tight against their body when they are in the way of the play? It doesn't make them invisble!!! They are still there, and they are still in the bloody way! Does it make some sort of difference that I don't know about?
Rubbish. Can't see where you get that from. The standard of umpoiring at the moment is poor, but it pretty much evens out over time.
[quote:43d0391d33="lum"] Given the usual Port Melbourne handicap, I thought they battled on well.[/quote]
Would love to know what you mean by the Port handicap.
My personal gripe isn't so much with the standard of umpiring per se, it's more with the rules. I feel that in the last 20 years or so, football has introduced many rules which actually detract from the game.
There are that many rules that umpires must watch out for these days, that they are bound to get some decisions wrong. If I had my way, I'd reverse possibly half of the rules that have been introduced in around the past two decades, and instantly umpires would find their jobs much easier.
I feel this is an area the VFL could be proactive in, and begin altering some rules so that the game is simpler for everyone, and more attractive as a contest.
The standard of umpiring in todays reserves game at Williamstown was as poor as I have ever seen. A numberless umpire seemed determined to stamp his authority on the game with his constant whistleblowing for free kicks that didn't seem worthy of free kicks during a tight and tense final term. Aside from paying some frees I didnt think were there, some of the more blatent in the back and holding the ball decisions of all time seemed to be missed.
I hope the umpire I'm referring to remains numberless (ie. not on the main VFL umpires panel) and preferably umpire another competition that I have no interest in!
And while I'm at it, I'm sick of the VFL umpires paying 50m penalties against whinging players. Its a competitive game, I barracked for no side today and that umpiring display got me frustrated. I can only sympathise with the players. Perhaps AFL Victoria need to penalise their own umpires when they make mistakes.
As for the boundary umpire in the same game, well if he managed to keep up with the play in the final term he might've seen a ball which went about 40cm over the boundary line on the full which he had to call a throw in cos he was puffing and panting 80m away and didnt see it.
I agree with you, footyman, regarding the clamping down on players talking back to umpires. Football is a contact sport, it's emotional, and we cannot expect players to be athletic robot-monks who must not utter a word to umpires. Umpires make mistakes, and if a player feels aggrieved, they should be able to have their say. It's not going to alter a decision, it's not going to have an impact on the game, the umpire should have a thick enough skin to simply cop it and keep the game going. A player won't rant and rave too long if his opponent is about to play on with the ball. What the Rules Committee and these bodies are not taking into consideration is that football is an emotional game, and each game should be umpired individually, according to the spirit and vagaries in which it is being played in, as opposed to being umpired stringently to a sweeping set of rules, which do not take into account each game as an individual entity.