ezydoesitbigfella wrote:bird of prey wrote:BigB wrote:In the absence of a more suitable thread... I am so concerned about the head high rule interpretation which effectively encourages, and I reckon some sides are coached to do it, risking a neck injury by charging in with the head down to draw the free kick. As a health professional, I think it is the most ridiculous state of affairs when the umps are protecting the players head when the player is deliberately putting themselves at risk.
And I don't think our "amateur" umpires are up to interpreting the rule properly, I have never seen a free kick awarded against someone for charging whilst doing it. It's time for common sense to prevail before someone ends up quadraplegic.
Never heard of a coach telling their players to duck their head into an oncoming player.
The rule is a bit ridiculous though. Every week I see at least 1-2 free kicks given where a player deliberately ducks into a tackler. The umpires are instructed to pay that as a free kick though. I've spoken to the umps during the game about this, and they agree that it shouldn't be a free kick, but they have been instructed to pay them as free kicks by head office. So it needs to be taken up with them.
People will never be satisfied - umpires protecting the ball player at all times - any head high contact is penalised - and if a player "ducks" and seems to be doing it constantly - the umpire reports it to the coach and the matter is dealt with there. Expecting umpires to make a judgement call on whether a player ducks, or slips - in a millisecond - is pure folly - especially in lower grades where their level of expertise may not be as high as higher grades.
It's a simple rule - protect the ball player and any head high contact should be penalised - storm in a tea cup.....
Thankyou for the considered opinions. In response...
1. When the same players use the tactic repeatedly in a game, one can't help but form an opinon. If my opinion is wrong, fine, but my suspicion is that there is a strategy being employed by some players exploiting the rule.
2. My main concern "as a health professional" is that the current rule encourages reckless use of the head with the player knowing they will get a free. It may appear to be a storm in a tea cup to some, but when you're a quad, using said tea cups is problematic. I am suggesting a rule revision at the top level which still protects the player while discouraging "head led" charging, especially given the umpires at amateur level seem unable to determine the difference.