You think ?
I know.
There was unofficial advantage. If there was a clear advantage the umpire simply would not blow his whistle
as that would disadvantage the team in possession. It was as if the umpire had never seen the infringement.
You would see it outside of Victoria where grounds were firmer and play was more open.
But that's not an advantage rule. It could be that the ump actually didn't see the infringement. An advantage rule only applies IF the umpire confirms he has seen the infringement, but indicates he is not stopping play because he believes it would disadvantage the team who won the penalty.
This happens in soccer (ref calls 'play on' without blowing his whistle, sometimes waves the play on signal), rugby (ref indicates penalty via holding out his arm, without blowing the whistle, waiting to see if an advantage accrues), netball (call is usually 'Advantage contact' indicating they have seen the infringement, but haven't blown the whistle, field hockey, lacrosse and probably quite a few others. All have three things in common regarding their advantage rule -
1. The rule works.
2. The umpire indicates he has seen the infringement, and
3. HE DOESN"T BLOW THE WHISTLE.
But, the AFL, in their infinite wisdom etc.......
Hey - now let's discuss why we don't think the current AFL administration should be introducing new rules or changing old ones.