For a game that began with 10 rules written down in a pub in 1859, Australian football has been characterised by the evolution of those laws.
The ambiguity of the original code evolved slowly over time as the game morphed from a form of rugby to the free-flowing game we know today.
Where a Player in Possession of the Football has not had Prior Opportunity, a field Umpire shall award a Free Kick if the Player is able to, but does not make a genuine attempt to Correctly Dispose of the football within a reasonable time when Legally Tackled.The AFL's umpires boss Stephen McBurney addressed the issue this week, telling AFL.com.au:
"I wouldn't have paid a holding the ball in my first year, if I was adjudicating it now," McInerny said."When I first started, it was a player taking three of four steps, it evolved into balanced and steady, and now it's evolved into a player being instinctive.
And McInerny also acknowledges there are also cases where a player does have prior opportunity and is tackled and held for a period of time, but not penalised for holding the ball.He says even umpires argue about applying the rules."I can recall around the holding the ball stuff, not everyone agrees with what the interpretation was when reviewing decisions.A glaring example is how far a player can run with the ball before he or she has to bounce it or touch it on the ground.
The AFL could solve the problem by painting an arc from boundary to boundary 15 metres beyond the kick-off line.The AFL rules book's example of 15m from kick in. McInerny said umpires worked on landmarks on the field. For example, if a player took possession at a centre ball-up and ran to the edge of the centre square, the umpire knew that was roughly 22 metres.But he was adamant that, unlike commentators, umpires don't count steps.
"The wording hasn't changed, what has changed is the game, and those that are left to umpire it have to adapt in their interpretations to ensure the game is played contemporarily." Every Monday the National Rugby League's executive general manager of football and former referee, Graham Annersley, gives the media an on-the-record briefing on decisions made in the previous round of football.
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