I'm more excited...

[NMWBloods]

You know what really gets to me? This 'you ducked into it' bull@@@@ the umpires go on with. I am a level 2 umpire. A few years ago they decided that ducking your head would still be considered as high.

After having a look at the 2007 rules, there is NO PROVISION for the umpire to judge that a player has 'ducked' his head into a tackle.

The rules are black and white, if it is high..it is high.

15.4.5 Prohibited Contact and Payment of Free Kick
(a) makes contact with any part of his or her body with an
opposition Player;
(i) above the shoulders (including the top of the shoulders
or bump to the head); or
(ii) below the knees.


It really annoys me when the umpire says "you ducked into that one mate".

Maybe the interpretation is that if you duck into it you are creating the contact. The rules say that the contact must go the other way.

[TheMase]

Is it not a case of common sense prevailing though? If there was never any allowance made for illegal contact instigated by the "victim" it would be possible for players to validly milk all sorts of free kicks when their opponent had not done anything wrong.

Agreed perhaps it should be interpreted that way. But we were told by the AFL that this was the way it was to be ruled... unless that has changed, but they have never enforced it this way in the AFL anyway.

[goswannie14]

Any number of times during a round of AFL football you will see players duck their heads. More often than not, it is in an attempt to avoid having their heads hit, not trying to get hit in the head to get a free.

I wonder sometimes if any of the top umpires have a clue as to what players are actually doing on the field.

[Slick Swans]

The three other attacking midfielders should be, IMHO,

Davis (in form...PUT HIM IN THE MIDDLE!)
O'Keefe (in form...PUT HIM IN THE MIDDLE!)
Malceski (in form...PUT HIM IN THE MIDDLE!)



Thoughts?

Interesting insight sharpy. I agree whole heartedly with Malceski, I think he's been our best player this year especially considering it's only his 2nd year as a regular.

I agree with Davis too. Has so much potential to be a damaging outside midfielder. When I think of our dream midfield, i think of Kirky extracting the hardball to Davo, for him to kick it down a forwards throat every time. Also as an attacking midfielder he obviously has the ability to kick goals ala Chris Judd.

I don't agree so much with O'Keefe as a midfielder, i currently think he's very close to the best HFF pushing up the ground type player in the comp. He's a great link for us to get it forward so I would leave him there.

However as another sort of outside midfielder type I would elect Dempster, although he's relatively fresh and untried, we can all see how his pace and great field kicking is. Plus from the few attacking situations I can remember him in, he makes fairly good decisions. I remember well in the 05 Grand Final he had it clear on the wing, Cousins rushing up on him, steped him brushed him away with pace then chipped a clever little kick to Tiger open in the pocket, instead of blazing to Hall.

Thats just my view, but i think that would give us a highly attacking, talented, speedy midfield, tell me what u think?

[swantastic]

6 clangers last week against the aints.

Hang on LA that figure includes Free's Against dont forget and we all know how crap the umpires were.