Geelong skipper Joel Selwood savaged by fans after first quarter free kick

Geelong captain Joel Selwood has come under heavy fire from fans and a former player after appearing to milk a free kick.

Joel Selwood savaged for taking a dive

Geelong skipper Joel Selwood might be one of the toughest players in the AFL, but on Saturday night he was slammed by fans for taking a dive.

As Carlton dominated the opening quarter, the Cats were looking for any way to secure their first goal of the contest and Selwood saw his opportunity and didn’t miss it.

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After a behind was kicked the Blues got set to bring the ball back into play, but before they could the umpire had blown his whistle and awarded a free kick to Selwood. The replays showed what had unfolded and along with fans being unhappy, those in the commentary box were equally upset.

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Blues youngster Tom Williamson jogged towards Selwood and delivered a bump that sent the Cats skipper tumbling to the turf and resulted in him slotting his team’s first goal of the game.

“It’s a gift,” Hawthorn great Jason Dunstall said on Fox Footy.

“(There’s a) fine line between being aggressive and getting in the face of the opposition and not going too far and obviously the umpire has adjudicated he went too far.”

You can watch the Selwood bump in the video player above

Gerard Healy added “there was some mayo on it”, but it was former Blues player Matthew Lappin who ripped into Selwood for the act.

“That free kick to Selwood is the worst you’ll see for the year. That encourages players to dive,” he tweeted.

“Selwood played for it because he knows he’s a good chance to get the free, that’s not his fault.

“The umpire pays it because he’s coached to pay everything he sees, that’s not his fault.

“Whoever coaches the umpires, that’s who’s at fault.”

"There's absoutely nothing in that."

- Adam Cooney on the decision which results in an easy Joel Selwood goal.#AFLCatsBlues

— AFL Nation (@AFLNation) June 20, 2020

That free kick for Selwood 😂 how soft has the AFL become.

— Luke Saville (@LukeSaville18) June 20, 2020

And a perfect ten from the Russian judge for that Selwood effort #AFLCatsBlues #AFL pic.twitter.com/FXn6gbrLMX

— PointsBet AU (@PointsBet_AU) June 20, 2020

Fans watching on immediately called for Selwood to come under scrutiny from the match review panel and be handed a fine or suspension for the dive.

Despite Selwood opening the goal scoring for the Cats, it was one-way traffic for the Blues as they stunned the highly-fancied favourites to run away with a 29-point lead at halftime.