Umpire Shorts

Cameron Dore debuted on Sunday at the Carlton v North Melbourne clash at Marvel Stadium. Cameron received Heritage number 444 some 32 years after his father Gavin (Heritage number 308). 

Has this ever happened before?  Sam Walsh runs into goal and kicks the ball over Sam Walsh’s head for another Carlton major.  First year Carlton recruit Sam Walsh has been a young up and coming star in his first year in the AFL.  In their round 5 game against the Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium, our best first year goal umpire, Sam Walsh stood in the goals.  Some would argue they even look alike.

It would be fair to say that field umpire Brent Wallace has had more than his share of setbacks since he was first contracted to the list in 2015.  Last Thursday night Brent stepped out in his 50th AFL match following his first injury-free preseason since 2015 and nothing could be done to wipe the smile off his face.  Brent, has struggled with a significant calf injury and only umpired the last 10 games of the 2018 season.  Strength and Conditioning Coach, Rob Jackson has determined that Brent will do all of his training, running in patterns that he would use in a game.  Hey presto, it worked.  Let’s hope the next 50 come a little quicker Wally.

If you’ve followed the media closely over the weekend you could quickly assume that the football world has become unhinged and fallen off its axis.  Every commentator had an opinion on different aspects of last weekend’s games.

Low scores, a couple of blowouts and a heap of warm and humid weather across the country didn’t stop AFL football from hitting our television screens for round one, across four days last week.

Billed as a grand final too close to call, the game itself certainly lived up to those expectations!  With scores level at the end of the third quarter, the game finished with West Coast the victors by 5 points in what many commentators were calling one of the greatest grand finals in recent memory.

Boundary umpire, Mitch Le Fevre achieved another milestone on Saturday evening, in Tasmanian like weather conditions.  Mitch would’ve felt right at home in the 7-degree temperature (windchill 3-degrees), albeit it would have been hotter on the ground.  Mitch moves into rare space in umpiring terms.  There are only 19 other boundary umpires who have appeared in more games than Mitch in the history of the game.  Currently he stands equal with Glenn Sinclair (1998-2011).  The boy from Tassie has been a finals stalwart over the past few seasons, including the 2017 grand final.  Congratulations Mitch!

Some fifty young Down Syndrome participants and their siblings got the thrill of a lifetime when they got to have a “kick on the G” prior to the Melbourne v GWS match on Sunday.  The AFL, MCC and Apricot Consulting got on the front foot to organise the third annual grid game.  Chris Donlon drove the agenda, umpire’s boss, Grant Williams, like his predecessors, Peter Schwab, Luke Ball and Wayne Campbell umpired one match, while the son of Jack McBurney, Oscar umpired the other.  Melbourne players made a surprise visit to the games and brought them to a premature halt with eager kids wanting photographs and a kick to kick with the AFL stars.

Field umpires, Justin Schmitt and Troy Pannell stood in front of their Melbourne colleagues before training on Thursday night and announced their retirements from AFL Football at the end of the season. Scott Jeffery spoke of Justin’s contribution to umpiring and Simon Meredith spoke of Troy’s legacy. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house – everyone rolled around the coaching room crying with laughter. It’s no laughing matter however, with the group losing over 500 games of experience.