Oppo Camp Non-Essendon Thread X

[Dave]

#lolnorf

 

[GUMBLETRON]

Ben Stratton's facial hair: street magician or date rapist?

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

Very hard to stomach a lot of AFL these days.

When the game is on the line and guys are choosing to duck and stage instead of taking it on then people are going to switch off.

 

[Zach Package]

Ben Stratton's facial hair: street magician or date rapist?

In my experience the two overlap at an alarming rate

 

[Mercuri Rising]

Ben Stratton's facial hair: street magician or date rapist?

either way, sleight of hand's got to be a lot easier when you can transfix people with that

 

[MarkJohnson#1]

Very hard to stomach a lot of AFL these days.

When the game is on the line and guys are choosing to duck and stage instead of taking it on then people are going to switch off.

It's becoming a joke, the norm in fact. It's heading down the soccer path and it disgusts me.

Stamp it out now or lose a massive part of the games identity...

 

[Zach Package]

It's becoming a joke, the norm in fact. It's heading down the soccer path and it disgusts me.

Stamp it out now or lose a massive part of the games identity...

I like Lingy's take on it. He wasn't 'staging' he was just trying to milk a free kick.

F***ing moron

 

[yaco55]

North threw the game away tonight - Hawk's good luck can only last so long.

 

[yaco55]

The footy media and the industry has got the discussion relating to frees for high contact so wrong - They argue these days the head is sacrosanct with the increasing concerns over concussion, yet they miss the core of the problem - Players are wilfully and deliberately putting themselves in danger with their actions when tackled - Umpires can quickly umpire this out of the game with sensible officiating.

 

[Doss]

This is a pretty grave allegation that Scott has made. Basically saying that the umpires told North players tonight that they wouldn't pay Thomas a free because he's a ducker.

Now, as much as I agree with the fact that Thomas is undeniably a bad ducker...that is extremely unprofessional from the umpires. To be telegraphing your decisions ahead of time is not ever how it should be done.

 

[pepsi]

This is a pretty grave allegation that Scott has made. Basically saying that the umpires told North players tonight that they wouldn't pay Thomas a free because he's a ducker.

Now, as much as I agree with the fact that Thomas is undeniably a bad ducker...that is extremely unprofessional from the umpires. To be telegraphing your decisions ahead of time is not ever how it should be done.

Good on the umps. Players ducking and staging for frees would be the hardest things umpires have to adjudicate with the speed of play. Any player who does it game after game should just be ignored. Bad luck for them, they should stop cheating.

 

[Doss]

I can't agree. Umpires should be judging each bit of play on its merits, not making pre-conceived judgements and worse, telegraphing that they flat out will not pay a free to a particular player because of his reputation.

That's ridiculous.

Even more so when there is a guy, nay two, up the other end in the same game, Sicily and Puopolo namely, who have snuck under the ducking radar (no pun intended) in the public consciousness somehow, but in reality aren't much better than Thomas.

I can't stand Thomas, but it's unprofessional to rule out frees ahead of time because guess what, occasionally they will genuinely be there no matter how much of a stager he is.

 

[DapperDon]

Same thing happened to Lloyd at the end of his career. Only so many times you can make an umpire look foolish before they wont pay them anymore. While I agree he is unfairly being singled out as the face of this new wave of ducking/diving he bought it on himself after years reaping the rewards for cheating. He can now reap the agony of his ways.

Same should also be applied to other known stagers. Stop paying them, they stop playing for them.

 

[Doss]

Hawthorn get kissed on the proverbial in general so I can't see a crackdown on Puopolo or Sicily any time soon, however.

 

[Engimal v2]

It's becoming a joke, the norm in fact. It's heading down the soccer path and it disgusts me.

Stamp it out now or lose a massive part of the games identity...

I didn't think it was so bad until I watched the State of Origin a couple of weeks ago. The players take hits that would see some AFL players do 12 backflips. It's embarrassing for the game.

 

[DapperDon]

Hawthorn get kissed on the proverbial in general so I can't see a crackdown on Puopolo or Sicily any time soon, however.

I can with Puopolo, he's not a favourite son so the media wont be afraid to go at him.

Problem is, most of the media are ex Hawks. Need David King to do it.

 

[yaco55]

This is a pretty grave allegation that Scott has made. Basically saying that the umpires told North players tonight that they wouldn't pay Thomas a free because he's a ducker.

Now, as much as I agree with the fact that Thomas is undeniably a bad ducker...that is extremely unprofessional from the umpires. To be telegraphing your decisions ahead of time is not ever how it should be done.

Thank God for the umpires - My previous post addressed this issue - Correct officiating by umpires will protect players.

 

[duckdog]

Hawthorn get kissed on the proverbial in general so I can't see a crackdown on Puopolo or Sicily any time soon, however.

Note how many times Puopolo flies unrealistically just to put one or two defenders out of the contest. Definitely part of their ploy

 

[Doss]

Thank God for the umpires - My previous post addressed this issue - Correct officiating by umpires will protect players.

Your post was correct but it actually doesn't have much to do with what I posted.

Umpires should not be telegraphing ahead of time like that. Simple.

It's unprofessional.

 

[Howard Moon]

In a positive note that was clearly the most enjoyable game I've seen all year, so combustible!

 

[Eleven 38]

If umps are telling players they aren't going to pay certain free kicks surely that could be classed as match fixing..

There has been no rule changes, if a free kick is there it has to be paid.

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

As I've stated many times before... all the top teams have these cheats and stagers who can extract a number of frees during a game. This usually results in 2-3 goals.

We have none. Our best of the years was Monfries who could do it a little but unfortunately he didn't have much game apart from that. Stants tries but looks awkward and doesn't get the frees. Jetta and Davey were our next guys but the umps wouldn't buy there's.

Looks like Derm got his Hawks over the line in this one. Put the Lindsay Thomas ducking on centre stage and everyone forgot about the handful of Hawks who are the best in the league at bending the rules.

 

[Dave]

This is a pretty grave allegation that Scott has made. Basically saying that the umpires told North players tonight that they wouldn't pay Thomas a free because he's a ducker.

Now, as much as I agree with the fact that Thomas is undeniably a bad ducker...that is extremely unprofessional from the umpires. To be telegraphing your decisions ahead of time is not ever how it should be done.

It's grave enough that he needs to front up and prove it. None of this we wont be talking to the AFL about it BS. He's accused the umpires of cheating, now he needs to back it up.

 

[ScrappyCoCo]

I don't see it as bending the rules at all. The rule is if you get tackled high when you have the ball...above the shoulders..you get a free kick. It always has been and always will be. If you have the skill to win the ball and sense a tackle coming....you have always had the right to dodge, weave, and evade any way you like so you do not get pinged for holding the ball.

A lot of the frees paid last night have always been paid high. I would scream blue murder if our players were not awarded them for the same thing.

The players know how to draw this free by lowering their centre of gravity and raising their arms so the tackler slips up and catches them high.

It is just a product of the professional nature of our sport...where every little thing in AFL is analysed and studied to the enth degree in order to get an advantage. Players that get tackled around the waste try to get the hands high and stand up in the tackle so they can release it with the hands. I cant remember them doing this much in the 80s...There are numerous other examples of our game evolving (zones etc).

So get used to it...it is a legit tactic and it is just our game evolving over time. Oh and before you all shoot me down, I don't think there is a rule saying you are not allowed to duck.

 

[tesla1962]

I don't think there is a rule that you are not allowed to duck (as opposed to leading/driving with your head) as it is one of the ways mentioned in the rules for evading tackles. I think it is more that if a player draws high contact through ducking their head then no free kick should be awarded and play on called. Whether ducking and exaggerated head movement should be subject to a staging charge is another matter I suppose.