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  1. #1
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    Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant


    Western Bulldogs premiership coach Luke Beveridge believes the AFL shouldn’t have reacted to angry Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson.

    Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge says the AFL “flinched” last week in response to Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson’s criticisms and it shouldn’t have.

    A post-match rant from Clarkson after his team defeated North Melbourne in Round 4 promoted a league crackdown on holding the ball from all umpires.

    Beveridge said Clarkson was within his rights as a “statesman” of the game to voice his opinion. But the Bulldogs premiership coach said Clarkson wasn’t always right.

    “Clarko has got every right as a statesman of the game to have his opinion and put that across. But it’s up to the powers at the AFL to work out whether or not they flinch, and they flinched. We need to be better than that,” Beveridge said on Thursday.

    “Imagine the challenge for the umpires and the players that within a week we have a change or an adjustment. We do it too often and it’s not acceptable.

    “Clarko is a very influential figure in the game … he has shaped the game in many ways. But whether or not he’s right all the time, that’s the decision at AFL House.

    “We need to make sure we are measured in our thought processes and we make good decisions for the game and everyone involved in it.”

    Beveridge said the swift reaction to Clarkson’s comments from AFL headquarters hurt the integrity of the game.

    “It means there’s no real formal process to discuss and risk manage what’s going to happen at the end of that,” he said.

    “We always have to forecast the change that will happen with any adjustment to rules, interpretation and adjudication, and we don’t do it well enough. But we have to be better at it.”

    Beveridge said the part of the game Clarkson attacked, unrewarded tackles that stops the flow of the game, wasn’t an area that needed fixing.

    “It depends what you want. Do you love a contest, physicality a situation where there are 10 or 12 tackles and is ballistic and the ball is still alive. There is nothing better in the game.

    “Why do you want to pay a free kick for a marginal situation when players are going at it and the ball stays alive. That’s one of the most entertaining parts of the game, but we want to change that.

    “There are plenty of other great things in our game without picking at the things which aren’t pleasing to the eye.”

    Beveridge revealed midfielder Lachie Hunter was a “big chance” to play against Carlton on Sunday having served his four-game suspension after being hit with drink-driving charges.

    But both Bailey Smith and Laitham Vandermeer will have to get through training after suffering concussion in last week’s win over North Melbourne.

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  3. #2
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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Well said Bevo, I have no improvement on what you said, no elaboration needed.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Love that he has come out and given Clarko and the AFL a bit of a clip on this. I don't usually get too caught up in rules of the game discussion, but this one really riled me. I HATE the 'reward the tackler' mentality, when you have ball players trying to make the play.
    Paying MORE free kicks does nothing for the game. And some of the free kicks paid last weekend are exactly what makes supporters lose their minds at games.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Quote Originally Posted by Ozza View Post
    Love that he has come out and given Clarko and the AFL a bit of a clip on this. I don't usually get too caught up in rules of the game discussion, but this one really riled me. I HATE the 'reward the tackler' mentality, when you have ball players trying to make the play.
    Paying MORE free kicks does nothing for the game. And some of the free kicks paid last weekend are exactly what makes supporters lose their minds at games.
    Me too. Knee-jerk decisions made without rational examination of the data and proposed solutions is a recipe for both not solving the pronlem, but actually creating new ones. Its the worst way to try and introduce effective change. Itreflects poorly on the professionalism of the game's administrators that they don't seem to understand this.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    It's also extremely obvious that if a coach suggests a rule change, regardless of how they dress it up, it's going to be one designed to benefit their team.

    You can bet if Clarkson coached a team full of contested ball winning beasts there's be zero talk of 'rewarding the tackler'. It'd be all about making sure the ball winners are protected.

    You couldn't pick a more biased person to listen to on rule changes than a coach. At least a 1-eyed fan might misunderstand their team's strengths and gameplan.
    Last edited by hujsh; 09-07-2020 at 01:58 PM.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    I agree we should not just reward the tackler, but since Prior Opportunity came in, players have tried to hold on to the ball to force a stoppage. There must be a genuine attempt to get rid of the ball.

    Having said that, you don't change the interpretation from one week to another.
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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    It seemed to me that Norf last weekend purposely created as many stoppages as they could to try and stifle our outside run and carry game because it was obvious that once the ball left the stoppage they had no answer. We had one side (us) wanting the ball outside but them trying to lock it in. We shouldn't be rewarding the tackler because it creates more players around the stoppage sweating on the ball winner. The AFL once again have it around the wrong way and should be promoting an outside game which is more attractive to the eye.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Quote Originally Posted by Mitcha View Post
    It seemed to me that Norf last weekend purposely created as many stoppages as they could to try and stifle our outside run and carry game because it was obvious that once the ball left the stoppage they had no answer. We had one side (us) wanting the ball outside but them trying to lock it in. We shouldn't be rewarding the tackler because it creates more players around the stoppage sweating on the ball winner. The AFL once again have it around the wrong way and should be promoting an outside game which is more attractive to the eye.
    Yes well said. Blind Freddy could have seen this coming. As soon as the AFL flinched to Clarko's demands it was obvious what was going to happen. A: An overreaction from the AFL and thus the umpires (the latter who are not at fault) and B: Not immediately but after weeks of umpiring HTB too hastily, players will stop trying to win the ball themselves and instead aim to immediately be second to the pill in order to apply the tackle and win the free kick. Is that what Clarko and the AFL would like? Isn't this the same Clarko who had a sly comment about us and prior opportunity in the 2016 semi? Unfortunately the reaction from the AFL is unsurprising to say the least. I mean it wouldn't have surprised me for them to allow throwing in response to Isreal Falou joing the giants. It's been going on for years and i don't think there are many fans out there who hold the powers that be with any sort of integrity. This is just yet the latest example of the poor administration our game is facing from an on-the-field point of view

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Quote Originally Posted by Mitcha View Post
    It seemed to me that Norf last weekend purposely created as many stoppages as they could to try and stifle our outside run and carry game because it was obvious that once the ball left the stoppage they had no answer. We had one side (us) wanting the ball outside but them trying to lock it in. We shouldn't be rewarding the tackler because it creates more players around the stoppage sweating on the ball winner. The AFL once again have it around the wrong way and should be promoting an outside game which is more attractive to the eye.
    I seem to be the voice of dissent, but I don't want to see continual stoppages. The prior opportunity interpretation gave too much leeway for a player to simply grab the ball and take the tackle for a ball up.

    The umpiring last week (although sometimes over zealous), basically said it is ok to be a ball winner, but you must at least make a genuine attempt to get the ball out.

    The games flowed better because of it.

    The move the ball on idea, also adds another skill, in knowing when to take possession.
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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Quote Originally Posted by Bulldog Joe View Post
    I seem to be the voice of dissent, but I don't want to see continual stoppages. The prior opportunity interpretation gave too much leeway for a player to simply grab the ball and take the tackle for a ball up.

    The umpiring last week (although sometimes over zealous), basically said it is ok to be a ball winner, but you must at least make a genuine attempt to get the ball out.

    The games flowed better because of it.

    The move the ball on idea, also adds another skill, in knowing when to take possession.
    Yes I agree with this but I didn't see much of it last week. I don't like players simply taking possession and locking it in. I'd prefer them to paddle the ball along to avoid being tackled and another ball-up. If we could move towards strategic taps/paddles at stoppages to avoid repeated ball-ups that would be great. But to what Bevo is saying, rather than a knee-jerk reaction to a complaint from a coach, lets sit down, identify what we actually view as the problem, why it's a problem and then set about addressing it to achieve the desired outcome. Because this knee-jerk reaction at the moment has umpires, fans, coaches and especially players confused as to what is going to happen if they take possession of the ball.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Quote Originally Posted by bulldogsthru&thru View Post
    Yes well said. Blind Freddy could have seen this coming. As soon as the AFL flinched to Clarko's demands it was obvious what was going to happen. A: An overreaction from the AFL and thus the umpires (the latter who are not at fault) and B: Not immediately but after weeks of umpiring HTB too hastily, players will stop trying to win the ball themselves and instead aim to immediately be second to the pill in order to apply the tackle and win the free kick. Is that what Clarko and the AFL would like? Isn't this the same Clarko who had a sly comment about us and prior opportunity in the 2016 semi? Unfortunately the reaction from the AFL is unsurprising to say the least. I mean it wouldn't have surprised me for them to allow throwing in response to Isreal Falou joing the giants. It's been going on for years and i don't think there are many fans out there who hold the powers that be with any sort of integrity. This is just yet the latest example of the poor administration our game is facing from an on-the-field point of view


    Ha just as I mentioned Clarko's comments re our 2016 semi against them, he brings it up again today. I don't think he has gotten over us knocking them off:

    "If I was a significant influence then things would have changed (four) years ago when I spoke after the Western Bulldogs final," Clarkson said.

    "Nothing's changed since then. If it has changed a little bit in the past week, I'm hoping it's for the betterment of the game and not necessarily just for the betterment of the Hawks. I hope people can see through that and see it's ... for the betterment of the game because I think the game will open up a little bit more if the whistle is blown just a little bit more."

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Can you think of another major professional sporting code that merrily alters its rules mid-season, let alone at the urging of one of its coaches?

    Bravo Bevo, and Clarko's not the culprit here despite wondering if he might exert some influence on an AFEL vulnerable to the latest 'state of the game' debate - it's entirely their willingness to operate in ways that mean they're constantly chasing their arses on this matter.

    Absolute hacks.
    Last edited by Rocket Science; 09-07-2020 at 04:06 PM.
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  19. #13
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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Like I said in the North game day thread, its ridiculous that a rule change occurs 1.during the season and 2. within days of a coach having a whinge.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    Got to get the balance right. If you favour the tackler over the guy going in and getting the pill then you are penalising the playmaker and encouraging the bottling up of the game.

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    Re: Bulldogs coach says league overreacted to Clarkson rant

    This all bodes well for an extra edge when we meet the horrible hawks. Clarkson wouldn't like one of his ex-deputies speaking out against his views.

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