Taggers

[Avoid the rush]

Really, really sick and tired of watching cheats get away with cheating!!!! OK, OK I am an avid supporter of a side that has had some of the most negative players in AFL history.Granted! The older Libba, the restaurateur Dimma, the ex CEO Hose, the younger Billy, Liam Picken etc etc. They were all fantastic at negating and I am sure they all crossed the line at times. HOWEVER can someone tell me how the Geelong on baller (no idea who he was and probably no-one ever will {deliberate sarcasm for effect} got away with molesting the Bulldogs number 4 at centre bounces and in the centre square. Surely a simple whistle from one of the THREE....Yes THREE umpires officiating the performance of the football match, explaining that "sorry pal, but the ball is miles away and you're not allowed to place your arms around the player who is trying to make the game enjoyable to watch!!!" The tens, no hundreds of thousands of people, who attend these football shows are not there to watch insignificant unknowns, who can barely land a contract, harass, nay, molest the most skillful and majestic of it's performers. It is like some little known musician, coming from behind K.D.Lang on stage at Wembly, and putting their hand across her mouth as she begins to sing Hallelujah, better than anyone has ever has, just to negate her performance. It is like a golfing hacker running up to Adam Scott and trying to smother his 5 iron onto the green. C'mon AFL!!!!! Let us enjoy the best of what football is. Don't belt Sean Higgins 'cause you think he is prone to being soft.....Don't allow some thug in a Nth Melbourne jumper to put his knees into his opponent , (who may or may not be a full forward), don't let reserve players playing on senior guys trying to regain form to push them over as the ball is bounced....not once...but every time!!! We love this game! Don't bugger it up!!

[SonofScray]

There are some real unusual things happening in footy at the moment. The refusal to punish players who play outside the rules in any meaningful way is one of them. Punches and cheap shots, off the ball holds and piss weak posturing. Either punish them via reports and free kicks are free the players up to sort it out themselves.

[boydogs]

What brought this on mate? Was Bont copping it against Geelong?

[ratsmac]

There are some real unusual things happening in footy at the moment. The refusal to punish players who play outside the rules in any meaningful way is one of them. Punches and cheap shots, off the ball holds and piss weak posturing. Either punish them via reports and free kicks are free the players up to sort it out themselves.
For me for me footy started changing when they started rewarding the dweller instead of the bloke battling to get the ball. So it's not surprising the shit that goes one in today's game.

As for taggers, for me they have their place in the game but I agree they should be pulled up more often when they have no intention of getting the ball and hang on to the player who does.

[Doc26]

We've had our fair share of negating / tagging players over the journey so we are not immune to the point that the OP is expressing and curiously we lost last week's game because we didn't put enough emphasis in negating Dangerfield and JSelwood.

So whilst the AFL has laid focus on freeing up key forwards from scragging defenders in recent years it does strangely continue to turn a blind eye to permit / endorse the league's most exciting and damaging midfielders to be 'molested' at stoppages, and be so handicapped, which goes against the AFL's goal of freeing up and hastening play at all costs.

Whilst this is permitted by HQ we must apply similar attention to our opponents 'Bontempellis' otherwise we will get what we got last week by Dangerfield, and then this week by the likes of Stevens and Ross.

[Mofra]

Wasn't Jong playing a run with role on Dangerfield last week? Seemed to follow him at every stoppage

[Doc26]

Wasn't Jong playing a run with role on Dangerfield last week? Seemed to follow him at every stoppage

If Jongy was running with Danger it was more like

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9rvn2gz1xi8gz8g/Gump.jpg?raw=1

[Twodogs]

Wasn't Jong playing a run with role on Dangerfield last week? Seemed to follow him at every stoppage


He played a bit as our second onball ruckman but when he played as a mid he was trying to be the spare player at the front of the contest. Jongy's the type to sidle up to Dangerfield at the odd ball up just to see if he could beat him one out for the ball but we seemed weirdly reluctant to address the fact he was torching us at every bloody contest and give him an opponent.

[Twodogs]

As for taggers, for me they have their place in the game but I agree they should be pulled up more often when they have no intention of getting the ball and hang on to the player who does.

I agree. There's a place for the bloke who's prepared to work hard and keep up with his opponent and who blocks and smothers and tackles and generally get in the way. Not the player who holds his opponents jumper or otherwise illegally hold him up.

[S Coast Simon]

The problem we have is they are now scraggers not taggers. Bumping and blocking is fine but the arms around them from behind is the most blatant holding and it's allowed. The umpires on the corner square should be calling these frees. It is a blight on the game. Whoever said it is correct the games has gone downhill since the holding the ball on the ground when they penalise the player going for the ball and reward the guy sweating off and waiting to jump on and hold it in. We clearly see and know that the tackler is not trying to get the ball out yet the umpires can't see it. You should be tackling to the ground and then trying to rip the ball away from the player ie rugby union style.

[Twodogs]

The problem we have is they are now scraggers not taggers. Bumping and blocking is fine but the arms around them from behind is the most blatant holding and it's allowed. The umpires on the corner square should be calling these frees. It is a blight on the game. Whoever said it is correct the games has gone downhill since the holding the ball on the ground when they penalise the player going for the ball and reward the guy sweating off and waiting to jump on and hold it in. We clearly see and know that the tackler is not trying to get the ball out yet the umpires can't see it. You should be tackling to the ground and then trying to rip the ball away from the player ie rugby union style.


Yep. Hammer, nail head. 100% spot on. It's the choppers/holders/scraggers (no I didn't mean you Scraggers you're fine) rather than the run with who spoil the game.

[Happy Days]

Dedicating a man to follow another man around ruins everything that good teams should be doing from stoppage set ups and also from a rotational aspect and is best left to bad teams who can't impose their style on another team due to a lack of talent. The game has gone past taggers.

[S Coast Simon]

I can't believe the AFL haven't clamped down on it as they have changed everything else to make a greater spectacle. Yet they let people gret scragged at every stoppage. And then hailed a hero because they kept such and such to bugger all possessions. Respect should be payed to Bevo and the Bulldogs for doing their bit to make footy a better spectacle. Your welcome AFL

[bornadog]

I can't believe the AFL haven't clamped down on it as they have changed everything else to make a greater spectacle. Yet they let people gret scragged at every stoppage. And then hailed a hero because they kept such and such to bugger all possessions. Respect should be payed to Bevo and the Bulldogs for doing their bit to make footy a better spectacle. Your welcome AFL

Similarly in the ruck as well as fullbacks holding on. Just watch Grundy at Collingwood, at every boundary throw in he has his arms around the opposing ruckman.

These aren't new rules, they are existing rules that are not enforced.

[Avoid the rush]

The problem we have is they are now scraggers not taggers. Bumping and blocking is fine but the arms around them from behind is the most blatant holding and it's allowed. The umpires on the corner square should be calling these frees. It is a blight on the game. Whoever said it is correct the games has gone downhill since the holding the ball on the ground when they penalise the player going for the ball and reward the guy sweating off and waiting to jump on and hold it in. We clearly see and know that the tackler is not trying to get the ball out yet the umpires can't see it. You should be tackling to the ground and then trying to rip the ball away from the player ie rugby union style.

yes yes. This was exactly my point. Now taggers are cheating and getting away with it. Has to be umpired out of the game, it isn't hard.