The Roar
The Roar

AFL
Advertisement

Are there fewer free kicks in 2014?

Expert
23rd April, 2014
34

Ross Lyon made the headlines on Wednesday with his assertion that there has been a distinct shift in the way AFL games are being umpired in 2014. Specifically, Lyon said, “There are free kicks that were being paid last year that aren’t being paid this year…

“It just gets a bit confusing. There’s clearly been a different methodology applied from the coach of the umpires to the umpires.”

Abject lack of Ross-isms aside – something which tells me the bloke is probably serious in what he’s saying – does he have a point? Well, yes and no. Here’s a chart of the average free kicks paid per game every season since 2004:

So yes, he’s right. So far in 2014, there have been 32.7 free kicks paid per game, down from 36.1 throughout the entirety of 2013 and well down from the most recent peak of 40.3 in 2011. But, as you can see, we’ve essentially gone back to where we were in 2004, where there were 29.7 free kicks paid on average per game.

This seems strange to me, so let’s drag our time series back another decade?

At the current rate, 2014 is on track to be the fourth-lowest free kicks per game paid in the past 20 years. It looks quite anomalous, and gives a bit of credence to Lyon’s call that games are perhaps being under officiated so far in 2014.

Advertisement

Obviously we can’t say for certain whether this is due to umpire discretion – such as allowing rolling mauls to occur on a more frequent basis, which is a clear (and awful) trend this year – or due to changes in the laws – such as the Travis Cloke Rule (which I’m 100per cent for). But the facts are the facts: there’s been less free kicks paid so far in 2014 than any season since 2004.

As someone that watches a lot of footy, I’m not quite sure yet whether I’m for or against the lack of frees so far this season. Less free kicks means more of a chance for players to show off their skills and athleticism, however, the clear trend towards congestion and mauls is a real turn-off.

It will be interesting to see how this tracks over the remainder of the year, given there’s a growing spotlight on the issue. Perhaps I’ll rehash this piece at the mid-season mark and see whether we’ve changed course again.

close