Roast Statement on Umpires

[goodie23]

Does anyone know if theres video on youtube or anything of the end of the game. i want to see the "ball up" (holding the ball) decision in the goalsquare again.

Also did anyone else see the out on the full decision when wce kicked out from a behind and it missed everyone by about a foot and a half and the boundary umpire forgot?

You can watch a replay on the AFL website which even allows you to skip about to goals, behinds and free kicks.

And yes.

 

[Persevering Saint]

Most farcical element to come out of this is the attitude of some Eagles fans, ranging from those griping about Darling but conveniently ignoring Riewoldt (our defenders aren't as practised at dodginess so they hold more than chopping the arms which is more visible to the one-eyed) to the truly delusional who think the Eagles were stiffed for free kicks for three quarters and the final one was umpired fairly.

Now some bozos are complaining that we've gone whinging to the AFL whereas as a club we are long overdue to be asking questions. A cursory glance at the statistics can tell there's something awry, the Eagles game is the perfect catalyst.

It's the confusion that comes when you think that what has become the norm for you, is now a basic right. If your definition of deserving a free kick, is any time your player flails his arms about like a little girl, and not when somebody's actually in his back or around his neck, then of course you're going to be confused.

Here I thought fair adjudication was what everybody deserved.

 

[tbarker]

I tried to sneak through the moron filter

Mmmm - looks like our moron filter is broken - this one has slipped through. Boys can someone turn it back on please - thanks.

 

[SaintLex]

Definitely.
Do you think Geary should go?

If he does it, yes. No doubt in my mind. We need to stamp this aspect of the game out for good, no matter who they play for. I'm sick of seeing it.

 

[phantom13]

It was interesting listening to the team on Footy Classified last night, it does seem as though there has been a deliberate push in the last few weeks to drop the free kick count and "let it go" more, which whilst i am all for makes it damn near impossible to tell what is a free kick anymore. It gets worse when it seems to be done quarter to quarter. I think out game and the Essendon game showed umpires making a genuine and deliberate change to how they umpired from 3 quarter time onwards and for the first time in my life i genuinely believed i was watching the umpires try to influence the outcome of a game (Essendons not ours) by not paying free kicks or paying stupid ones. I thought the umpires were trying to drag Carlton across the line. Our game it didn't seem like they were trying to get West Coast up, but it was umpired totally differently to the rest of the game. Its frustrating, just as we (the viewers) are getting used to games being umpired one way, they change it, then as we applaud the positive change to revert at three quarter time in a game. It's mind boggling.

 

[NarklesHelmet]

Spot on Punter and spot on to all the other posters so far. I have been too seething to post anything.

My ex-umpire mate reckons it is more of the same - one senior umpire destabilising the younger ones who got influenced by WCE players. The rot set in when we tackled hard in the second and third quarters and did not get a single HTB when there was clearly several.
I give up on the umpires and us. clearly they hate us and we have to cop it and move on and keep training for non-free kicks.
At least we have some fight and the young blokes learnt something and we keep a high draft pick (the only consolation).

I must admit I am a little confused as to why so many are saying the first three quarters were ok. They weren't. They let things go, sure, but they still made some really baffling decisions, especially the ones relating to holding the ball like you rightly highlighted in your post. The last quarter, they ramped up their incompetence in a disgraceful fashion but the other quarters were far from ok.

I watched nearly every game this weekend and they definitely have put the whistle away and overall the games were better for it. What gets my goat is that, for example, we suffered terribly when they cracked down on players encroaching into protected areas (god we conceded some really important 50s to that rule) and now they couldn't care less about that! How ridiculous! It makes me really angry that in our sport, interpretations change from week to week. It is a farce and no one who thinks logically can stick up for the way interpretations change like this.

 

[THEROO 09]

I have said for 5 yrs on this site we have had the arse end of all close decisions ever since Grant Thomas told them to leave their EGO'S in the change rooms.

 

[Plugger35]

I have said for 5 yrs on this site we have had the arse end of all close decisions ever since Grant Thomas told them to leave their EGO'S in the change rooms.

Sums up the problem, the umpires are precious egotistical w***ers who think they're above criticism.

Wouldn't surprise me if they are still punishing us for GT's comments which is disgraceful petty mindedness considering he no longer coaches the club.

Apparently Gieschen has gone on holiday, hopefully it's to Iraq or Afghanistan and he steps on an IED.

 

[35Saints35]

I have said for 5 yrs on this site we have had the arse end of all close decisions ever since Grant Thomas told them to leave their EGO'S in the change rooms.

Adam Schneider sarcastically clapping to the umpire in late 2009 also hasn't helped. He missed out on a crucial free late in the last qtr of 09 gf iirc. Umpires don't like being mocked

 

[NarklesHelmet]

I have said for 5 yrs on this site we have had the arse end of all close decisions ever since Grant Thomas told them to leave their EGO'S in the change rooms.

I wasn't a massive GT fan but he was absolutely spot-on with what he said about umpires. Not a truer word spoken, seriously, their performance would improve if they followed that advice.

 

[Half Back Pocket]

Be nice Noid no need for the personal comments is there? Just agree to disagree.

Tbh I thought the umpiring was about 4.5/10...if you are going to let the play flow and only pay "obvious" free kicks, don't pay tiggy touch-wood frees in the last 15 minutes!

I still say, I've never seen a worst non-decision than Rooeys tackle on Shuey...absolutely terrible

 

[Saints_MarchingIn]

Have you guys seem this?

 

[NarklesHelmet]

Something I wrote on another thread to a poster to try and explain that the issue many Saints fans have with umpires cannot be so easily put down to as paranoia or confirmation bias but that there is a possibility that smaller teams like ours may well get shafted more often, especially from umpires who are not professional. Think it is worth quoting in relation to this thread too:

"I agree, Aussie Rules is a sport more than any other where interpretations come into play. I'm a sports nut myself with a degree in psychology and studied as many sports psych subjects as I could. One of my lecturers who I used to chat with a lot talked about the "Old Trafford effect" which is a theory about richer, more succesful sport teams like Machester United unfairly getting more favourable calls from referees because of the expectancy that they deserve it and the psychological effect that has on those officiating games involving powerful and traditionally successful clubs. It made me think more about the fact that we are dealing with impressionable individuals as umpires, people the same as us all. Of course this "Old Trafford effect" can come into play in the AFL as well, and then factor in travel and other variables: human inconsistencies exist among individual umpires that are not fully professional and get often over-complicated messages from superiors (I'm looking at you Giesch, KB and Vlad). Basically, it is a really tough gig being an umpire in this day and age and if any position should be full-time and professional in our game, it is umpires.

Comfirmation bias? On the whole, you are probably right but it isn't so clear-cut. With a game as complicated as Aussie Rules where officials aren't fully professional (yet, let's hope it will happen) and given the game is so difficult to officiate anyway, you can get a lot of randomly bad calls from non-professionals more likely to be influenced by outside factors. It is not that crazy a notion given the randomness of the current umpiring that any given team can be on the end of a really poor run with umpiring decisions. It isn't likely but in AFL umpiring we are dealing with a difficult issue given the nature of the sport, professionalism - or lack of it - among the umpiring fraternity and an AFL commission committed to a hands-on approach to everything to do with the game."

Umpiring is a tough gig for sure but I don't see how it can be categorically ruled out that we are, and have been, getting shafted more often than not for a long time.

 

[Nutsngum]

The free kick differential over 3 years is much more telling of an actual issue with rules and umpiring then us getting antsy over the season so far. The sheer amount of different players and personnel over that time yet zero change in frees means to me that the issue is not us, at least not entirely.

Actually, how the AFL can look at such a huge discrepancy across all teams and think this is okay is a joke.

 

[Baldur]

post deleted

If you did have a point to make, you just lost it due to your potty post.

 

[Squizz]

we suffered terribly when they cracked down on players encroaching into protected areas (god we conceded some really important 50s to that rule) and now they couldn't care less about that!

Are you suggesting that Saad, Milne and Jones have been pinged repeatedly for this????

 

[Squizz]

Riewoldt is probed on the issue (around the half way mark of this broadcast).

http://austereo.castmetrix.net/podcast/378302368699198158/1/RushHourTuesday11thJune2013.mp3

"it does suck the life out of you ... especially the 50/50 ones"

 

[Noidenous]

If you did have a point to make, you just lost it due to your potty post.

Just what are you protecting with such an action?

I forwarded the suggestion to one K. Bartlett already, by the way.

 

[Plugger35]

The free kick differential over 3 years is much more telling of an actual issue with rules and umpiring then us getting antsy over the season so far. The sheer amount of different players and personnel over that time yet zero change in frees means to me that the issue is not us, at least not entirely.

Actually, how the AFL can look at such a huge discrepancy across all teams and think this is okay is a joke.

If there was one good thing about the horribly biased umpiring performance against West Coast it has now brought it to the attention of the media and public just how badly we've been treated by the umpires in recent years. Hopefully that will be enough to embarrass the AFL into finally giving us some better treatment but it won't get us back the wins it has cost us this season and any chance of playing finals.

Seriously I can't think of any club in any other professional sporting competition that has been so systematically screwed over by umpires/referees as St Kilda has the past couple of years, happens far too often to be a coincidence. About time the club drew a line in the sand and said enough is enough, start treating us fairly or we'll refuse to take the field. Hurt the AFL's bottom line and they'll soon change their tune.

 

[SaintsSeptember]

Its like living in a world where the speed limit is zero, but the police pretty much let it go.
But St Kilda is the shady looking 18 year old on P plates with a hotted up commodore.

Too much interpretation in the rules means that they can pretty much penalise whoever they want whenever they want.
AFL in its current form will never grow outside Australia , because its too hard to officiate.

 

[Half Back Pocket]

does anyone have the video of Roo's tackle on Shuey? The umpire was 10 meters away FFS!!! Roo should have been shooting from 20 meters out straight in front

 

[Rors]

I laughed at KB's explaination on SEN yesterday & again today of why guys like the Selwoods, shuey, priddis etc receive a lot of free kicks. It is due to the service they receive from their ruckmen & the sheer number of times they get their hands on the ball, & also the amount of times due to this that they get tackled.....

Hmmm.... I would have thought that you would also get pinged for HTB a lot if that's the case KB....

 

[The Punter]

KB never engages the argument. He is the proverbial brick wall.

 

[Plugger35]

KB makes about as much sense as Gieschen with his explanations, how two morons like them are in charge of umpiring beggars belief.

Most punters off the street could do a better job than them.

 

[Rors]

does anyone have the video of Roo's tackle on Shuey? The umpire was 10 meters away FFS!!! Roo should have been shooting from 20 meters out straight in front

This happened in the 1st quarter & was the precise moment I knew we were going to be f***ed on by the umpires... That tackle by Roo was Raph Clarke/Max Rooke-esque, I could not believe it wasn't paid!