Match Day Rnd. 2. Western Bulldogs V Sydney Swans. 7.50 pm Etihad Stadium.

[longmile]

Just imagine how happy we would be if the free kicks in the last two games were reversed.
20-8 in GF and 31-18tonight.
That's a 51-26 differential. The Bulldogs get 2 frees for every 3 paid. We would be premiers and victors tonight if we receded that sort of favoratism.

this just made me so depressed

there are just so many 50/50 calls in the AFL and they need to be sorted out

[Foreign Legion]

Nic Newman is going to be a regular soon IMHO. I have been pushing him up for a while - but he deserves it. Not a game breaker like Malceski, but has good judgement and a lovely kick. Great first game.

Will Hayward - yep he is going to make it. Great first AFL game - he was better than the JLT games which is a great sign. Robbie Fox - maybe - will need to improve but not bad at all.

[Hotpotato]

That's pretty astonishing.
The Bulldogs are certainly the umps fav team and will remain so for a fair while.
It would make for a great PHD to examine how to seduce umpires to be fairer to one team over another.

[goswannies]

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Those stats speak volumes

[Boddo]

Sadly the game is changing so much. You used to be rewarded for attacking the ball but now the player sitting back and holding off the play is the one being rewarded. It's not in the spirit of Aussie rules and tonight was the perfect example. Hawthorn started it n the Western Bulldogs have perfected this and the AFL just don't seem to see where this once great game is heading. An uncontested running brand of footy that is closer to a cross between league & soccer. Sad very sad.

[DA_Swan]

Very Happy for Sam Reid that will have done his confidence wonders - the Dogs have got Parkers and Hanners measure - JPK was stuffed by the end he was under so much pressure - we need Heeney back bid time

[mcs]

Just imagine how happy we would be if the free kicks in the last two games were reversed.
20-8 in GF and 31-18tonight.
That's a 51-26 differential. The Bulldogs get 2 frees for every 3 paid. We would be premiers and victors tonight if we receded that sort of favoratism.

Yet it'll be swept under the carpet again because the final margin looked pretty 'comfortable'

It is the utter bull@@@@ calls that we keep getting. I can call 3 from tonight cleanly - the Zak Jones I think it was HTB in the last quarter, the Mills rushed behind, the AA holding free kicks just to begin with, and then the 50 on the Jones one as well (I am happy enough with the free being given on that one). Of the frees we got, there was one shonky deliberate Out of Bounds call, but there weren't too many dodgy calls. Just like the grand final, the 50/50 calls all went one way at the critical time.

The free kick counts, in both games, did not reflect the nature of the contest in broad terms. Like the grand final, the dogs had more of the play tonight on balance, but there was a hell of a lot of scragging football in tight in both games - which would suggest matches that should have fairly even free kick counts. We are not twice as undisciplined as the dogs - but that is what you could draw from that free kick count.

And don't get me started on the basketball passing....

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On a positive note, look at those numbers of Jakey Lloyd - great game! Nothing shabby about the output of Newman or Hayward in there either, and we saw the class of Florent on display tonight too

[Billericay]

Did you see Horse's presser. He went as far as he could re: holding the ball decisions being one sided. He also said Tippo doesn't have a break

[longmile]

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Wow the Swans lost a lot of the major stats and probably their confidence and will after losing a lot of the pivotal free kicks! Crazy!

[goswannies]

Wow the Swans lost a lot of the major stats and probably their confidence and will after losing a lot of the pivotal free kicks! Crazy!

Don't forget, we won the interchanges too

[dejavoodoo44]

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Shouldn't. Low force, not high.

Not late. Not 50.

[Boddo]

One of the most rediculous things is that the afl media is such a boys club it will not highlight how bad the umpiring has become so will not go hard as everyone wants to keep their cushy jobs. No1 will go hard at these decisions it'll be along the lines of "yeh the mills one is a bit iffy but jeez isn't Picken such a smart courageous player" and then the conversation moves off on a tangent. It gets glossed over way to much week after week whether it's ch7 or Foxtel. One thing I'll say it's no coincidence that a person like Akamanis will never get a look in as he's exactly the type of person to highlight an issue like these. It's just one big mates club.

[dejavoodoo44]

Lloyd had a top game too. Non stop running

Yep, top game from Lloyd.

[Doctor]

The free kick against Aliir on Boyd was so bad that even Boyd looked embarrassed. If it's in front of goal you'd have to be sure I'd have thought.

[dejavoodoo44]

That was a dreadful decision. Sure give the free kick (Even though it really wasn't there). But what the @@@@ was the 50m penalty for. As bad as the Allir holding call, or the Mills rushed behind, or the Jones HTB when he got crunched as soon as he got it. We got a couple of lucky calls, but they got a hell of a lot more over the night, just like on grand final day.

In my, slightly biased opinion, the Aliir holding call was the worst decision of the night, amongst a field of strong contenders.