Mac Andrew was not the only one who thought the umpire made a blue in awarding a free kick against him at a crucial time of Saturday night’s game;even the AFL admitted King should not have got the free.
St Kilda see off a big challenge from visiting Gold Coast to record their fifth win. Elsewhere,on a day of umpire call controversies,the Kangas broke their winning drought in style against West Coast and Hawthorn’s finals surge continued against GWS Giants.
Hawthorn,St Kilda and Geelong scored wins in the Saturday matches of round 12.
Port Adelaide have lost a pair of damaging players for Thursday’s clash with unchanged Carlton,while Collingwood,beset by injuries,made five changes at the selection table.
Ross Lyon and Sam Mitchell have very different views on umpire coaches speaking with umpires during breaks in play,while St Kilda’s newest player had a life-changing night on Wednesday.
The St Kilda forward is at a crucial moment in his career and needs to start asking the hard questions about his future.
Narrm have secured a top eight spot after downing lacklustre Euro-Yroke,while Hawthorn climbed to 13th on the ladder by defeating Brisbane,and the Crows gave their percentage a boost against the Eagles.
This time last year the Saints were top-four contenders,but 12 months on they are mired in the bottom four and in a deep slump that’s testing even their most optimistic supporters.
The AFL’s new pay deal has created space everywhere,and smaller clubs have to offer more than money when competing against the powerhouses for signatures.
Tenants of the AFL-owned Docklands stadium are queuing up to ask for more games at the MCG.
St Kilda want to shift a number of home games to the MCG and,over the longer-term,have a shared tenancy between the AFL’s Marvel Stadium and the MCG – in the same manner as Essendon.