‘What a load of rubbish’: AFL fans fume at missed free kick amid rules confusion
Furious footy fans were scratching their heads after a free kick that was called last week was seemingly ignored.
AFL
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
AFL players and fans are still coming to terms with the time wasting rule after it cost Collingwood badly last weekend, but wasn’t paid in Carlton’s win over Port Adelaide on Thursday night.
The Blues ran away from Port in the fourth quarter to claim a 16.11 (107) to 10.11 (71) victory, breaking their Adelaide hoodoo and making the Power look like a “fake top four team”, as Fox Footy’s Jason Dunstall labelled them.
After the AFL sent a midweek memo to clubs, the holding the ball rule was noticeably tightened up in the first game of Round 12, with players penalised on several occasions.
Melbourne v Fremantle | SUN 1PM | LIVE with no ad breaks during play on Kayo | New to Kayo? Start your free trial today >
Eagle-eyed fans also spotted a moment late in the fourth quarter of Thursday night’s game when the umpire chose not to award a free kick for time wasting.
When Carlton Jack Carroll was tackled in the centre square and a ball up was called, he tossed the ball on the ground, far from the controlling umpire.
Port Adelaide’s Jason Horne-Francis noticed appealed for a free kick, but his efforts fell on deaf ears as a different umpire came in to do the ball-up at the stoppage.
The moment came a week after Collingwood’s Lachie Sullivan was pinged for time wasting in the dying stages of his side’s clash with Fremantle, which ended in a draw.
Thursday night’s incident could have been a much bigger drama if not for the fact Carlton was leading by 36 points at the time.
At a stoppage for a ball-up, Sullivan was penalised for handing the ball to teammate Nick Daicos instead of umpire Matthew Nicholls, and Freo’s Sean Darcy was gifted a goal from the free kick.
“I didn’t love the Fremantle-Collingwood call on Sullivan,” Fox Footy’s Nick Dal Santo told news.com.au.
“To the letter of the law, the umpire actually called it correctly. I just don’t like the rule. I don’t think that’s how that moment or any moment of a game should be adjudicated.
“If that’s in the first minute of the game, I don’t want to see that as a free kick against. I just don’t like that for our game.”
The AFL has clarified that it is deemed time wasting if a player does not give the ball directly to an umpire at a stoppage. Players are allowed to throw the ball on the ground, but handing the ball to another player is deemed time wasting.
Footy fans, especially Collingwood supporters, were perplexed a time wasting free kick wasn’t called after the Sullivan decision last round.
One fan wrote on X: “What’s the rule again? You must hand the ball back directly to the umpire? Lol what a load of rubbish…. JHF even pointed it out to the ump and he did nothing…” one Collingwood diehard said.
A Magpies fan account said: “Where was the time-wasting free here.”
Meanwhile, the umpiring of the holding the ball rule had become as clear as mud, with movements such as a player turning 360-degrees when in possession often failing to be pinged this season, where that had long been accepted as an instant holding the ball penalty.
Midway through the opening term, Carlton’s Charlie Curnow took possession and then had one arm held by Port defender Aliir Aliir.
Curnow fell to the ground and turned before belatedly throwing the Sherrin at his boot, with the umpire quickly blowing for holding the ball.
One person watching intently was former Collingwood skipper and coach Buckley, who fired off a tweet on X dripping with sarcasm.
“Who would have thought that forcing the ball carrier to make quicker decisions would result in a more up tempo, open game of footy?” he wrote. ️
“Great adjustment.”
There were a series of quicker whistles during the game as the umpires carried out the instruction from AFL HQ.
Early in the final term, as you can see in the video player above, Sam Walsh grabbed a loose footy after a ball up and was quickly wrapped up by two Port players, with the umpire again swiftly paying the free kick.
In this instance, Walsh had zero prior opportunity to dispose of the ball, but the decision negated another stoppage and allowed play to continue far quicker.
“That’ll be ball,” Dale Thomas said.
“It’s going to be,” Brayshaw added.
“Is that the way you would like to see holding the ball adjudicated?” Nicholson asked Joel Selwood.
“You’ve just got to look to make an attempt from there,” the Geelong great replied.
“So even just throwing your boot at it, give it a chance.”
Later in the game, Buckley again took to the social media platform with another take.
“And kudos to the field umpires tonight,” he wrote.
“Nick Foot, Matt Stevic, Jamie Broadbent and Craig Fleer have executed brilliantly.
“An interpretation change is one thing but it still needs to be put in (to) practice…. great work.”
Originally published as ‘What a load of rubbish’: AFL fans fume at missed free kick amid rules confusion
Revealed: The panel which will oversee Dees’ review after backflip
After rejecting the need for a full-scale review of the club all through 2024, Melbourne has backflipped. JAY CLARK reveals the three men who’ll conduct the sweeping review.
Macrae, Daniel … Bevo? The big off-season calls facing the Dogs
The Western Bulldogs have made finals in seven of the past 10 seasons but were smashed by Hawthorn on Friday night so where to now for Luke Beveridge? Plus the latest on a premiership pair.