The AFL’s head-high free kick warning has divided coaches, with some praising the move as proactive and others criticising the league for caving to public demand. | GeraetsNell
has divided coaches, with Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge accusing the league of another “flinch” and caving to public demand, while other club coaches praised the move as proactive.
“Using Joel Selwood as an example, the reason why Joel Selwood gets a lot of head-high free kicks is because he’s probably the hardest on the football and on a loose ball, on a contest and at a competition. So reward him for it. Beveridge was unsure how long this latest crackdown would last, highlighting previous examples this season of rules being adjudicated differently across different weeks.
AFL boss Gillon McLachlan argued on Tuesday night “it’s the same rule, clarified” and coaches and players have been trying to “exploit” it.While Beveridge disapproved, Geelong coach Chris Scott, Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin and Hawthorn counterpart Sam Mitchell backed in the clarification. “I think it’s probably a good call, hopefully it means we see less chances of getting hit in the head,” Mitchell said.“I think in general when they make rule changes, it’s for the better, so let’s hope it’s true on this occasion.”“It’s not a great look for our game where we try to draw free kicks, but it is a tough thing to umpire,” Goodwin said. “For the AFL to come out say ‘this is what we’re looking at’, and we can pass that message onto our players.