Swans queried AFL grand final umpiring

Yes, Umpiring at AFL Grand final are stupid and ridiculous. Just in the first 10 minutes of the game (2017 Grand Final) I see Five wrong decision, not the first quarter but first 10 mins. What kind of umpiring is it? win or lose, fair umpiring is required not one sided view as I'm seeing in the first 10 mins. I really disgusted , I don't think the AFL chosen right. The game is NOT FAIR umpiring decision, NOT FAIR!!!

What about the goals Sydney were gifted from 50m's and freekicks? The 50m to Kennedy, if you actually watch replay in slowmo the Doggies player had left the ground long before Kennedy marked, so it is not 50m. Then the freekick against M.Boyd that gifted Sydney another goal. The ball came out in a tackle, which Boyd then punched. Again, no freekick as it was not incorrect disposal. Funny how you mention contested ball as a reason Sydney should win more freekicks. How about you actually look at the stats. Dogs won contested ball by +23. Yes, +23! And if you actually did some research you would have found out how the Dogs actually broke the record for contested ball this season. Recording the highest +contested ball differential in recorded history. So you actually made an argument in favour of the Dogs free kick count. They get to the ball first, more so than any team in recorded Champion Data history, combined with a bunch of players who are good at drawing free kicks, as well as some midgets like Caleb Daniel, Dahlhaus, Smith, Hunter, Mclean and Libba. Sydney won the free kick count in the last qtr and were gifted many, yet the Dogs just ran over the top of them to win the last quarter convincingly. The Swans had their chances.

Well, its been proven that most of the umpires have a subconscious bias toward Victorian teams, not surprising given most of them are Victorian. A final involving interstate teams must feature umpires who are impartial and free from bias, so in this last example, a West Australian and South Aussie should have officiated the game. The umpiring was so one sided the Swans should have gone to court to have the result overturned and the game played again. Seriously, it was a disgrace and the officials should have been dropped from the roster after that performance.

Yep, I knew what you were applying arms length to, and I was saying players and coaches are not arms length too. If footy coaches etc are trusted to run and select their teams ,why not do the same with the arms length umpire organisation you recommend? We fans and others will let them know how they're performing. Such a body would/should consult widely.

You could be an optimist and hope the players and coaches are professional! The cynic in me says yeah, no. Maybe over each ten weeks you take out the highest and lowest scores before averaging them. You would need some external professionals to audit and give the results. The arms length refers to not having any AFL involvement in appointment or selection of umpires to positions and games. A separate entity needs to be fully separated from the AFL.

I thought the same thing Cat. Wenn is somehow implying that we're lucky to have them at such a bargain price given their assumed demand outside the game?! They're on a base salary of $65k for half a year's work. Not too bad for a fitness fanatic with an interest in footy I'd reckon.

Also have to wonder about the type of person who needs a 2nd job when they make $300k p.a.

Like the arms length idea, but what's to stop players and coaches giving the best points to the umpires that tend to favour them. The other team might balance it up, but it's hardly arms length in the way you suggest for the AFL. Like you, I hate badly umpired games. They do not satisfy anyone except the one-eyed, and leave a bad taste. Too many of them and you lose faith in the game. Fairness is incredibly important in sport. Not enough is written or said about it.

And pay them more than $80K if they're top drawer, ie, an AFL umpire. A badly umpired game is almost no game at all, so they're worth it. And like with the players, without them there is no game.

You might be right. In this case it was my impression rather than an analysis. There were crunch moments when Boyd and the Bont did special things to change the momentum. But that does not make them the better team, and I was non-plussed by a number of decisions and non-decisions that went the Dogs way.

I have never been as disgusted at the umpiring as in that Grand Final and believe it determined the outcome. When one player is taken out below the knees and there is no free kick then the players adjusted their game. When they could just throw the ball with no free kick then the players adjusted their game. The number of incorrect disposals was through the roof. The third below the knees incident injured Hannebery and the Swans lost. The umpires in the finals knew the results the AFL wanted and to further their careers either consciously or unconsciously were biased. The AFL did not want a fourpeat. Unlucky Hawks, the Bulldogs threw the ball and got away with it. Probably not sufficient to make a difference but still not right. When the Swans won their prelim the AFL did not want an all Sydney final. Unlucky GWS, players are now free to run within a couple of metres of a player taking a free kick. AFL did not want the Swans to win, one free kick in two and half quarters and the injury to Hanners did the trick. To restore confidence in the umpires I would need: - umpiring to be set up under a separate entity that is funded by the AFL and is at arms length - players and coaches to give weekly feedback on umpiring performance by way of scores and this to be passed on as averages over the last ten games. Umpires with the highest scores getting to officiate the big games and especially finals. Undoubtedly Victorian teams will still have an advantage playing in Melbourne especially in finals and good luck if you come up against a Victorian team that has not won a flag in a long time.. If the AFL does nothing as I expect then non-Victorian team need to be prepared to get the treatment GWS and the Swans got. Non-Victorian teams need to say enough and push hard for reform. If the AFL is serious about expanding the competition then confidence in unbiased umpiring will help. Pissing off non-Victorian clubs and supporters is not a recipe for success. As you can probably tell I am still pissed off. If the game had been fairly umpired I'd accept a strong effort and a fair loss. I won't be wasting money going to finals this year. I know of Swans' fans who have written asking for their money back. I haven't wasted my time.

If an umpire doesn't want to go full time because he can make $300k per year outside of umpiring, then let him walk. A full time umpire on $80k per year is better than a part time umpire who makes $300k in another occupation.

Are you sure about that? Despite the phantom free kicks and goals handed to the Bulldogs on a platter by the umpires, despite the most lopsided free kick count in GF history, despite the Swans receiving a single free kick from the 13 minute mark of the first quarter to early in the final quarter -- the Swans were only 1 point down with 8 minutes to go?

The Dogs are coached to win free kicks and not give away free kicks. They know how to 'push' the rules (throwing the ball). It works. They deserve to win the GF. But to say the free kick differential was a once off and bad umpiring would be wrong. The Dogs have had a massive free kick differential all year. The Crows in round 7 had about 4 free kicks up to 3/4 time. The Crows changed the way they tackled and went for the ball after that game. The Dogs were smart in exploiting this. The umpires might negate the advantage the Dogs have had in this area this year.

Good call by Longmire to say umpiires need to be full time proffessionals . Players are these days. Umpires need to get up to speed and put biases aside. Yes they do exist. Western Bulldogs played good footy on the day and against GWS too but both times they got more than a little umpiring help. It also doesn't help umpires when AFL keeps tinkering with rules.

Yes, the better team won, but a number of frees went missing.

Umpiring has always been controversial, and it probably should be in a vital sport. However, professionals should umpire professionals, especially in such a fast complex game. Or, add an extra ump. The standard of umpiring is high given the circumstances, but it needs to be better for the good of the game. Of course, the cry will be 'no depth', but that is in the current arrangement. Professionalize training, status and wages and the depth will take care of itself. As to guys on huge sums in their workplaces: they would have to choose what to do. Is that unreasonable in life? How many players at the lower levels, including AFL players, choose the game before other things? Some also choose their careers or study over their sport. The elephant in the room in this discussion is the AFL's rule/interpretation policy.

The dogs exciting style of football and sudden fairytale resurgence saw them win many neutrals over. Umpires are neutral (bar one perhaps, whom Adelaide rightly outed). They reminded me of geelong in 2007. Both teams were allowed a greater benefit of the doubt in officiating. For Geelong it was time in the tackle, for the Dogs it was quick ball out (thrown). This benefit extended to all aspects of the game. All season the Dogs increased a lop sided free kick count, so the GF was always likely to follow suit. Sydney were hard done by, much more so than the Giants the previous week, and in a fairly offciated match may have emerged winners. We'll never know. All they can do is suck it up, and all the competition can do is hope it reverts to normal this season. Clubs need to be careful over complaints - look at the Saints after Grant Thomas earned the wrath of the umpires. I think the Doggies earned their flag, but the officiating left a bitter tang for many.

If the a afl allows it and dont sanction us for not doing anything out of the rules or set up some crazy situation we play all big teams at anz stadium or even worse give us some weak umpires that are too scared to blow the frigging whistle so the dont upset 80 thousand one eyed victorians

Swans have all the motivation they need to win this years flag. Longmire could easily have 3 premierships as coach and will get his reward in 2017 and 2018.