TOPIC:

Who's behind this you ask? 
Dill the Dill and his AFL PC brigade who need to be seen to be doing something but as usual going about it the wrong way.
It needs to be targeted at the other comps where there is less oversight, where young umpires are learning their trade and copping abuse that is entirely out of order. Yes the AFL would have sort comment from the umpires and no one will ever know what those comments are, but as I said previously I dont believe there is a significant problem in the WAFL, SANFL, VFL or AFL, I believe umpires and the football judiciary already have the tools to deal with on field player abuse of umpires. They need to provide more support to the other comps, ammo's country footy and juniors.

Senior Seagull wrote:

Who's behind this you ask? 
Dill the Dill and his AFL PC brigade who need to be seen to be doing something but as usual going about it the wrong way.
It needs to be targeted at the other comps where there is less oversight, where young umpires are learning their trade and copping abuse that is entirely out of order. Yes the AFL would have sort comment from the umpires and no one will ever know what those comments are, but as I said previously I dont believe there is a significant problem in the WAFL, SANFL, VFL or AFL, I believe umpires and the football judiciary already have the tools to deal with on field player abuse of umpires. They need to provide more support to the other comps, ammo's country footy and juniors.

And that is exactly what I said previously which you failed to acknowledge.

You guys are missing the point, it’s seen as an accepted practice for players and supporters to verbalise umpires, people have then taken that attitude down to lower levels so they now don’t have enough umpires, that means not only enough umpires to umpire games but that means a lack of umpires coming thru to step up to higher levels. The only way to fix the issue is to raise the problem at the highest level not the lowest

I'll have to agree to disagree on this one MO, this is a problem from the bottom up not the top down. Sure there are occasions where players go over the top at AFL and state league level but they all know they are being filmed and more often than not the umpires have got a good handle on it. It's the community based levels where there is no security and footage being filmed except on peoples mobile phones where umpires would feel most vulnerable and I do have sympathy for them.

Perhaps the laws are not tough enough on those who abuse umpires at community based levels. It would be impossible to put police at every football match being played and have it filmed.

And the fish always rots from the head, it starts at the top, fix that and the rest will improve

This rule should only apply to competitions that have neutral umpires as you know some club umpires in ammos do a hell of a lot of favouring towards their own team which causes a lot of issues itself. If this rule is used in the lower grades of ammos I think it will lead to more frustrated player and spectators leading to more serious issues. Grades with pool umpires can use this to try and change player/spectator behaviour 

The game has been in ruins for a long time. I cannot watch the style of football currently being played. I must have been spoilt watching free flowing football in the 1980s and 90s. The never edning rule changes that amount to nothing because the coaches find ways around them, the defensive football that has been played for the last 20 years, and the AFL changing the name of the game from Australian Rules to AFL has totally ruined it for me. I honestly couldnt care what happens this year.
 I will always follow my WAFL and Amateurs club, but that is it.