Troy Pannell & Leigh Fisher

Happens all the time to keep games close & “exciting”, then turns around later to ensure (mostly) the correct result. It’s only when a team is completely doninant, and the other really inept, that you get blowouts these days.

The AFL hate blowouts.

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It’s completely unacceptable they wear earpieces. You don’t think someone’s talking to them at different stages

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Troy Pannel is an oxygen thief.

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Was he umpiring that ess melb game a few years back when we gave away 6 or so 50 metre penalties?

Simple solution is mke these guys accountable to the public. It would do wonders for everyone if they were forced to explain reasons why they made X decision.

Amazing to think you are forced to resign for an affair at AFL House yet you can be completely incompetent and unaccountable and keep your job as an AFL umpire.

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They tried that (umpires explain decisions) but after round 3 journos/comm specialists stopped turning up.

I understand coaches not being allowed to give them a name as that bad attitude does filter down to lower leagues were violence is more prominent. But surely, the umpires boss or coach can say “yep, got that one wrong”. Surely they aren’t so precious that a week off for a poor performance will hurt their ego so much

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Whilst I understand the sentiment behind protecting them from public scrutiny I’m taking the approach that humanising them will actually attract umpires at junior levels. Letting the footy public know they made mistakes because you know what, they’re human, would actually mean people could sympathise with them. Currently we are led to believe they don’t make mistakes and therefore critise them when they do.

Also on the previous occasions they were too black and white. I think they need to reflect on decisions whilst also pointing out the grey areas involved with interpretations.

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They’re seen as untouchable and don’t answer to anyone. They also have every ex-Umpire and muppet at AFL house trying to justify and excuse poor performances each week.

Then when anyone jumps on talk back radio or tweets AFL journalists, supporters are told to shut up and accept it.

I understand that umpires performance is critiqued ‘in house’ but nobody has any idea if it happens, as their performance never improves.

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Remember that time we booed Parnell off the ground when he was unconscious?

I’m surprised he doesn’t give us all the free kicks.

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He hasn’t got any worse since then… there’s a reason he got booed, and it’s not because he’s Aboriginal.

(Hadn’t heard that before… I LOLed for the chucks.)

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Got knocked out by his own teammate.

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From memory, we got right back in the game after that c*** went off too :joy:

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I was at that game. It was a top 10 for me of some of the most biased game influencing disgraceful umpiring I have ever seen.

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Is that the game where one of their bald blokes got a free for high when he ran into a stationary Hibberd, then called play on when Hurley had his head over it and Hannebery took him out? Was crap.

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What when they had the umpires manager just saying every single decision was correct?

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I left that game about 18 minutes into the first because I would have done much, much, much worse if he’d stayed on.

They got them about 4 or 5 goals straight off the bat with bad free kick calls, missed free kick calls to us or bad mark calls. Clearest case I’ve ever seen of one or maybe two umpires wanting one side to get up.

Also WCE make every ump feel like ■■■■ every time they don’t get a home town decision and it works. If you learn one thing about how the AFL works in the past 5 years, it’s that bullying always pays.

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What a soft K O K

He’s hated us long before that. You just need to look at that game prior to him getting knocked out.

I remember early days someone was saying that Brendan McCartney was the teacher of Parnell, and we could be in for a good match from the umpires.

Ohhhh How wrong that was…

Yep, Hurley got smashed in a head on bump by Hannebery which was called play on. From memory Baguley also got flipped upside down in a marking contest and got a free against. I don’t boo but I gave Parnell a send off that day.

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