AFL news 2023: John Olsen and Mark Ricciuto slam Crows goal review debacle as Ben Keays speaks out

There was no challenging the result, and there will be no monetary compensation, but the Crows will use the review debacle to demand change to the ‘unjust and unfair’ AFL.

Ben Keays celebrates what he thought was the matchwinner. Picture: Mark Brake/Getty Images

Adelaide chairman John Olsen has vowed to demand the AFL “remove the disadvantages that we have dealt with as a non-Victorian club for years” in the wake of the umpiring blunder that killed the Crows’ finals hopes.

A still seething Olsen said on Monday that the club would “vigorously pursue” a review of technology around goals and the ability of a score review to take place, on top of the Crows “unfair and unjust” fixture and travel schedule as a South Australian club.

The AFL on Sunday apologised to the Crows for the error that denied Ben Keays a goal that would have put Adelaide ahead with just over a minute to go in its clash against Sydney on Saturday.

Adelaide considered a range of options to appeal or challenge the result, including its legal options, before accepting the result that killed off its finals chances.

Crows chairman John Olsen (L) is not happy with the AFL. Picture: Getty Images

There won’t be any monetary compensation for the Crows’ finals chances being killed off, with the amount the club stood to make by making an elimination final understood to not be significant.

Crows players and staff will miss out on any bonuses they have in their contracts regarding making finals in 2023.

Over an eight week period, the Crows had a run of games that included trips to Launceston, Geelong, Ballarat and Darwin.

Olsen said that amount of travel was unreasonable and a stark contrast to Victorian clubs who don’t have the same away game requirements.

The Crows could also look at getting the AFL to assist with its travel bill given they play out of South Australia every second week outside of the week before an away Showdown.

“There needs to be some consideration of the travel schedule,” he said.

“The travel schedule is unfair and unjust, the fixture is unfair and unjust.

“I will be pushing really hard that the inequality that we face as an South Australian AFL club is addressed.

“We will vigorously pursue it over the next few months, removing the disadvantages we face.

“(It) means setting us up to remove the disadvantages that we have dealt with as a non Victorian club for years.”

Olsen said he had been in discussions “at a chairman level with the (AFL) Commission”, regarding how the league could make this up to the Crows – which will be pursued over the next month to two months”.

“We will be pushing the AFL for a review of the rules that precluded the intervention (of a goal review) in those circumstances,” he said.

“Imagine if this was in a grand final.

“It is unfair and unjust... we have to ensure that doesn’t happen again.”

After all his time in football, Mark Ricciuto thinks he’s never been angrier than at the goal umpiring decision on Saturday night. Picture: Getty Images

Crows board member Mark Ricciuto said on Triple M the decision had made him “probably as angry as I have ever been in terms of football”.

“We all spoke about (as a board) yesterday and the thing that has gutted Crows supporters, members, players, coaches, everyone associated with the club is that we haven’t had a lot go right since the 2017 grand final,” he said.

“Some of that is our own fault, and some of that is not, but it doesn’t matter... to make the finals this year would have been a bloody good effort and something to look forward to.

“We’ve had five close losses this year and twice in those five losses the AFL has come out and said we have made a mistake and it has potentially cost you the game.

“That makes it harder to swallow and it has been a sad ending to what could have been a good response and a finals berth for the Crows.”

Prominent lawyer Greg Griffin said the Crows couldn’t take any action against the league over the blunder because its board was not “independent of the AFL”.

“All they will do is try and huff and puff and try to blow the door down but they won’t do anything because the AFL can replace them in a heartbeat,” he said on ABC radio.

‘We feel your pain’: Crows star’s message to fans after howler

Adelaide midfielder Ben Keays has a message for fans, he’s “sharing their pain and feeling the same.”

Keays was at the centre of the goal review blunder which killed the Crows’ finals hopes and devastated Adelaide fans across South Australia.

Keays said he was still feeling the same as Crows fans.

“On the street yesterday some Crows fans were coming up and having a chat and just seeing how devastated they were, I’m sharing their pain and feeling the same,” he told Channel 7.

Keays thought he was the hero of the night before the wrong call. (Photo by Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Crows captain Jordan Dawson said there was nothing players could do about it even though it was “easy to think you were robbed” and they needed to focus on their performance across the whole match, key Adelaide figures were still seething on Monday regarding the circumstances of how the club’s season ended.

Dawson said he supported any initiative to take human error out of goal umpiring after Saturday night but he wasn’t sure what the AFL could or would do.

“It is good that they take responsibility for it but at the end of the day there is nothing that can be done,” he said.

“The reaction is still disappointment.”

Originally published as AFL news 2023: John Olsen and Mark Ricciuto slam Crows goal review debacle as Ben Keays speaks out