Free Kick Differentials After Round 8

[CureTheSane]

Free Kick Differentials After Round 8
From MMM Free Kick Differentials 2017

1. Western Bulldogs +36 (163 for, 127 against)

2. North Melbourne +26 (169, 143)

3. Carlton +21 (148, 127)

4. West Coast +18 (147, 129)

5. Melbourne +15 (152, 137)

6. Brisbane Lions +12 (172, 160)

7. Collingwood +11 (131, 120)

8. St Kilda +2 (143, 141)

8. Gold Coast +2 (139, 137)

8. Hawthorn +2 (138, 136)

11. Port Adelaide +1 (159, 158)

12. Essendon 0 (145, 145)

13. Fremantle -1 (143, 144)

14. Geelong -18 (151, 169)

15. Adelaide -20 (141, 161)

16. Sydney -27 (141, 168)

17. GWS -32 (134, 166)

18. Richmond -48 (141, 189)

[barry]

Heavily favoured to Melbourne teams, and most of the umpires come from Melbourne. Coincidence?, I think not.

[stevoswan]

Well, 8 out of the first 10 teams are from Melbourne....easily explained as per Barry's above post and yes, not a coincidence, with guess who STILL at the top and getting an armchair ride through games. Brisbane's positive differential can be put down to pity but WC baffles me. We all know they are favoured massively at home but it appears they do well away from home as well. They have always seemed to fair well with the umpires which is confusing, since, morally, they are not half the club the Swans are........and of course, no surprise to see the two Sydney teams right at the bottom. Not sure why Richmond sit last though.....just very dirty? Wouldn't have thought so. That list, like the umpiring itself, is quite confusing and frustrating.......

[bloodspirit]

Alarming for Richmond. Depressing for us. Nothing to see here, if you're a Dogs supporter.

[Nico]

Richmond supporters must be more livid than ever.

Hawthorn at + 2. Their feral supporters must be spewing.

[Hotpotato]

Interesting doc .... thanks for posting.
So that's a 63 differential between The Fairytales and Swans over 8 games.
How do we get into positive territory, or is it an impossible dream ...

[S.S. Bleeder]

Gee, what a shock (not).

It's always the same, year in, year out. We've been in the bottom quarter ever since I can remember. The Melbourne clubs and WCE up the top. It's evidence that the umpires are swayed by noisy feral home crowds and AFL and media bias.

[stevoswan]

Gee, what a shock (not).

It's always the same, year in, year out. We've been in the bottom quarter ever since I can remember. The Melbourne clubs and WCE up the top. It's evidence that the umpires are swayed by noisy feral home crowds and AFL and media bias.

At least Chris Scott had the guts to say it last week.......should be more honesty like that from all the coaches and stuff the fines.

[mattybloods]

It may well be some bias (possible unconscious) from the umpires but maybe its also about teams having different styles of play. Would be interesting to look at teams tackle count and defensive pressure acts to see if there is some association there

[Scottee]

Rather than looking at the differential per game, the differential in the total number of free kicks paid either way is interesting. Lions games total: 332; Richmond games: 330; down to Collingwood games 251. Massive difference.Must show up as a completely different spectacle depending on the team you follow.

[Velour&Ruffles]

Free Kick Differentials After Round 8
From MMM Free Kick Differentials 2017

1. Western Bulldogs +36 (163 for, 127 against)

Gosh, what a shock.

[Blue Sun]

The only thing shocking about that list is Richmond at -48. Everyone knows that the Dogs are given an easy ride by the umpires. They have a flag to prove it.

[Sandrevan]

Interesting stats. The Bulldogs have played twice in Perth already this year and were beaten both times. It seems that when the free kick count doesn't go their way they aren't the standout team all the commentators talk about.
This just reinforces my view about the 2016 GF. The Bulldogs finished 7th in the H and A season and got an armchair ride through the finals. The AFL had to have their fairytale I suppose. The AFL just couldn't face an all Sydney GF.
The Bulldogs though, are just following on from Hawthorns success in their interaction with the umpires.

[Sandridge]

Interesting stats. The Bulldogs have played twice in Perth already this year and were beaten both times. It seems that when the free kick count doesn't go their way they aren't the standout team all the commentators talk about.
This just reinforces my view about the 2016 GF. The Bulldogs finished 7th in the H and A season and got an armchair ride through the finals. The AFL had to have their fairytale I suppose. The AFL just couldn't face an all Sydney GF.
The Bulldogs though, are just following on from Hawthorns success in their interaction with the umpires.

Yes, they certainly did get an armchair ride. The Bulldogs won the free kick count in all finals they played last year and the further they advanced, the better the free kick differential in their favour became. Not only do they get a lot of free kicks, they get them when and where they count. And it's still happening this year. A couple of weeks ago they got a dodgy deliberate out of bounds decision very late in the game against Richmond. With the ball deep in Ricmond's forward line and Richmond needing a goal to grab a late win, the decision for the Bulldogs effectively killed the Tigers' chances. And interesting to note they are equal second for free against. Watch a Bulldogs game and see how many incorrect disposals they get away with.