AFL 2020 Geelong vs Collingwood: Coach rejects Josh Jenkins’ umpire joke

Not even his coach would defend Josh Jenkins’ attempt at mocking the umpires as the Geelong recruit’s gag fell seriously flat.

James Matthey

@jamesmatthey

2 min read

July 17, 2020 - 9:11AM

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Chris Scott clearly doesn’t share Josh Jenkins’ sense of humour, the Geelong coach playing a straight bat after his player threw some shade at the umpires.

Collingwood defeated Geelong 8.9 (57) to 5.5 (35) in Perth last night and Jenkins took to Twitter with a joke suggesting the officials weren’t handing his side any favours.

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Do we allow these umpires back into our hotel after the game !?! ðŸ˜‚ ðŸ¤£ #AFLCatsPies
— Josh Jenkins (@JoshJenkins24) July 16, 2020

Jenkins, who joined Geelong from Adelaide this season but is yet to play a game for his new club, clarified he was “just having some fun”. Scott wasn’t on the same page though, suggesting the forward “missed the mark” with his attempted gag.

Hardest job in the game. Iâ€™m just having some fun.
— Josh Jenkins (@JoshJenkins24) July 16, 2020

“I think Josh was trying to be funny,” Scott said in his post-match press conference.

“My experience with him is that he is quite funny. Sounds as if he’s missed the mark a little bit on that one.

“My assessment on the umpires? No, it’s worth looking back on. We’ve got the luxury of looking at the vision from all angles and making an assessment slowly.

“The umpires are a bit like us. They haven’t had much practice. It was the first time in front of crowds, not that that should have made a difference.

“If they were a bit rusty I think they’ve got an alibi.”

Geelong ended up on the wrong side of a 22-10 free kick count as the Pies dominated in front of 22,000 fans at Optus Stadium.

Collingwood has jumped to second on the ladder, leapfrogging the Cats who are now third with four wins and three losses.

Jordan De Goey was the Magpies’ best, kicking five goals. The 24-year-old has come under scrutiny for his lacklustre form but bounced back in style by leading Collingwood to victory, booting three of his majors in the third quarter.

Geelong captain Joel Selwood trudged off the ground with a hamstring injury in the first quarter but Scott was hopeful the issue wouldn’t keep the midfielder out of action for long.

“I think speaking to (Joel) and the medical staff briefly they’re optimistic it’s not too bad but it always takes a bit of time to make that assessment,” Scott said.

“There was no suggestion that we would think about putting him back on the ground so that says a little bit.”