Author Topic: Red cards .... Should the AFL have a send-off rule?  (Read 1790 times)

Offline one-eyed

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Red cards .... Should the AFL have a send-off rule?
« on: May 26, 2016, 03:23:40 PM »
Should the AFL have a send-off rule?

Author: Ben Hocking
Source: SportsFan
Thursday, May 26, 2016




The big question

AFL is usually devoid of the sort of blatant thuggery that warrants sending a player from the ground, but two acts this year have some people questioning whether it might be time for a change. Steven May's hit on Brisbane Lions ruckman Stefan Martin and last weekend's cheap shot by Tom Jonas on West Coast's Andrew Gaff were both penalised heavily by the tribunal. But while everyone was satisfied with the length of the suspensions, should players be held accountable during the game with the introduction of a send-off rule?

For


The current system of penalising a player after the event rewards on-field violence in the short-term. In both of the two incidents that have been sent straight to the tribunal this year, the player that was taken out of action was a key component of their side. Martin is one of Brisbane's best players, while Gaff won West Coast's best-and-fairest last year and was having a night out against Port Adelaide before being taken out of action. The offending player in each instance was able to carry on playing, while the other side was not only down at least one rotation, but they had lost the services of a quality player.

Most lower levels of Australian Rules football have send-off rules for serious incidents, and these take place with little controversy. If it is good enough for players as they are beginning to play the game, why should the top level of the sport be any different? The practice is also well established in other sports like soccer, rugby union, rugby league and basketball, which are competing with the AFL for the hearts and minds of parents who want their children to play a safe sport.

Against


One of the biggest problems with send offs in other sports is that it encourages diving and staging. The practice is rife in soccer and is increasingly becoming a part of the rugby league scene. With the reward on offer being as high as a player being sent from the field, it could encourage AFL players to try to fool the umpires.

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan has already ruled out introducing a send-off rule and said part of his reasoning was around legislating around the muddy waters of what would constitute a severe enough incident to warrant a send-off. There is already enough scrutiny on umpires and the perceived influence they have on the game, and putting these sorts of decisions into the mix could only make things worse.

Our verdict


We can't help thinking that the major issue people have with the send-off rule is the fact that it hasn't been a part of the sport before. That really should have very little impact on the decision. Any concerns about when the rule should be applied should be pretty clear cut - it should only be for severe impacts. This will rule out the prospect of player's staging to see an opponent sent off. It would not have been hard for the on-field umpire to adjudge Jonas's hit as severe, or May's hit on Martin, or Barry Hall's hit on Brent Staker. At present the victim of any severe and illegal hit and their club are the ones most punished by an illegal action. At the very least they lose a rotation and quite often a very good player for the remainder of the game. Then they watch the following weeks (when their star player may still be out of action) as their rivals capitalise on whatever suspension is served up to the offending player. Seeing as staging won't be an issue, we can see no good reason for the AFL not to introduce a send-off rule.

http://www.sportsfan.com.au/should-the-afl-have-a-send-off-rule/tabid/91/newsid/198646/default.aspx?cid=SF_LOWDOWN_AFL_article_shouldtheaflhaveasendoffrule_260516

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Re: Red cards .... Should the AFL have a send-off rule?
« Reply #1 on: May 26, 2016, 03:26:34 PM »
May as well bring in time outs too  :thumbsdown
Caracella and Balmey.

Offline one-eyed

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Re: Red cards .... Should the AFL have a send-off rule?
« Reply #2 on: October 03, 2018, 12:48:48 PM »
THE AFL will consider introducing a red-card rule for the 2019 season to deal with violent non-football actions such as Andrew Gaff's hit on Andrew Brayshaw.

As part of several proposals relating to the Match Review process that are set to be presented to the AFL Commission during the summer, the AFL may consider using an in-game video referral system to decide whether an incident is worthy of a red card.

Under the system, players may be sent to a 'sin bin' for a set period of time while the incident is assessed by an independent officer.

As an alternative to red cards, the League will also consider allowing teams a substitute player to replace those who have been forced out of a game due to a non-football action.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-10-03/afl-to-consider-redcard-rule-for-2019
« Last Edit: February 18, 2019, 04:04:27 PM by one-eyed »

Offline one-eyed

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Re: Red cards .... Should the AFL have a send-off rule?
« Reply #3 on: February 18, 2019, 04:06:30 PM »
John Longmire believes there is a place in the AFL for a red card rule as the Swans coach backs the league’s crackdown on all punches.

The AFL considered but then decided against a red card rule for 2019 following the Andrew Gaff punch that knocked out Andrew Brayshaw.

Longmire told the Herald Sun the AFL should reconsider the red card rule given the consequence of losing a player for most of a game.

“I think the (punch crackdown) is a reasonable move form the AFL to something we don’t need. I understand it went horribly wrong last year with one incident.
Callum Mills was knocked out by Tom Bugg in 2017.
Andrew Gaff throws a punch at Andrew Brayshaw.

“I know Andrew (Gaff) pretty well and he just isn’t like that, it wasn’t intended but it’s something to be aware of.

“I still think (a red card) needs to be discussed. At that particular time you lose a player and it’s the week after your opposition gets a leg up and the advantage but in the course of the game you are disadvantaged.

“It could create other issues and unintended consequences but is there’s a panel that could look at it during the course of the game.

“Of the really serious incidents, where do you draw the line? I don’t think it should be dismissed.”

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/more-news/john-longmire-says-red-cards-should-still-be-looked-at-by-afl-for-extreme-onfield-incidents/news-story/ea2d2d0b491221a82417cb77e8e927f0