Watched some of the gane again..we played poorly but to lose with that last non decision was just a bad way for any team to go down.
Every commentator called that deliberate. I have not seen any other act like that called otherwise. It was deliberate it so many ways.
There was not a crows player there.
Thirty seconds to go.
A point in it.
But the umpire could only assume it was an accident as he hit over the boundary.
If that game was played without thousands of screaming crows fans would it have deemed deliberate. Of course. Because it was.
It was a classic cass of how umpires get influenced by thousands of yelling supporters.
We see it so often in interstate games.
I dont mind the odd howler but this was black and white at a crucial time with a crucial score.
In other words...
One single UMPIRE determined the result.
Now thats off my chest...
Jake Melksham is not a player that belongs to a top eight side. Thats that.
May sadly played his only bad game today.
Tommy the same.
Jordan too.
Anb has played a few stinkers now and so has Hunt. And I guess Kozzie.
Maybe their tired
Even Langdon vanished in the second and third.
Spargo needs to do more than tackle.
Fritta was lost again.
But Sam W was a big let down. Just a goal from him would have won it.
I know hes played only two games and bb three but he really lacked passion...intensity..and physicality tonight when we really needed it. (as opposed to Walker)
His lack of intensity has been a charge levelled at him for five years now. We saw glimpses of it in a finals campaign a few years back but it all seems so far away.
I guess I believe that he should be drppoed for Bb. If bb and Tmac and Jackson do well and it means we lose Sam w to another club then despite the crticism, Im going to say: thanks for the memories. Perhaps we can get a good deal.
Before someine says hes the future...the future is now and next year. This is our window. Im not saying hes a bad player. He certainly been a slow starter. Im just saying we cant play him to stop him leaving. And we cant play with poor efforts lije todays.
Our backline was at its worst tonight. Always touted as keeping teams to low scores...it went belly up. We had very little clean exits and run.
So missed Salem. Lever however was excellent but poor Jetta looks totally cooked.
Aside from Lever, Oliver was splendid. Trac was strong and I thought Max and Harmes were as well.
Gus played a ripper in the first and improved again in the last but like others was missing for two quarters. He just doesnt want to or is incapable of reaching levels of winning votes.
Not sure if hes a finals player either.
Which brings me to the question of depth.
Aside from the team tonight, aside from Viney and Salem how many really good players do we have to put in if we have more injuries or form issues.
I still think we are a great team but Im not sure we have a great depth of great players in our enrire line up.
Maybe Sparrow. Tomlinsons done. Jones is just getting too old. Hore is out.
So with Melksham a fringe player, Nibbler not far from one lately, the possibility of Hunt going back in his shell after two shockers and Vineys injury uncertainty, I do believe we are really going to need a lot of luck and have a great run of no injuries if we are to win a flag this year.
Tonights game was always going to be tough. I mentuoned the game crowd thing prior but was told we always win there.
Its different when your the hunted. We are tired and looked as much. Crows had lost five in a row with nothing to lose.
But again it should have at least been a draw with that cowardly non decision on the deliberate.
If not deliberate was the player just aiming for the ball to stop an inch inside the line?
And if that was correct and not deliberate it must be true that EVERYsingle deliberate ruling this year (and there have been many) are incorrect. That if tonight was the correct call then we have never seen a deliberate out of bounds yet. Thats how clear cut it was.
How does an umpire get it so wrong. I dont believe they are cheats or "deliberately" hurting us. I just dont get how they could just be so wrong.
Is it the crowd. The stage of the game
The closeness?
Do umpires get nervous?. Im sure they do.
Do they think best not to do anything when they are nervous? That would explain tonights non call.
When introduced the deliberate rule was quite contentious
The deliberate rule has been rigerously pursued since introduced and more so all year. Even tonight Spargo was pinged when he handballed in front of himself hoping maybe he could follow up and collect it.
He was pinged for deliberate. It calls for umpires to mind read which is tough.
In the non decision no mind reading was necessary. The ball was heavily punched a good distance as the player went to ground. No chance of him getting to it again and there was no crow player anywhere near the boundary line. It could not be more clear.
But the umpire in nervously making no call read that the players mind was not punching it over the line on purpose.
Must have been another reason.
Love to know what the umpire thought his motives were. His fist accidently slipped into the ball and moved it fifteen meteres over the white line.
I know its just one call but to break a winning streak on just plain old incompetence is very annoying.
Sadly these poor decisions are happening all too often in interstate games with large obnxious crowds.
Cant we at leaat suspend or stop some of these spineless nit wits from time to time?
Is that too nuch to ask?
I know its not easy umpiring close games with big crowds but cant they at least give them some ear plugs. (And a book on the rules while they are at it).
Thanks for listening.