AFL Legends Demand Action as Soccer’s Issues Begin to Infiltrate the Game

Brownlow Medallists Jimmy Bartel and James Hird have urged the AFL to address the trend of players clutching their heads following tackles in an attempt to win free kicks.

They contend that this behaviour is increasingly becoming prevalent, especially with the league now awarding more free kicks for sling tackles.

Recently, Brisbane’s Lachie Neale and Carlton’s Adam Cerra were scrutinised after they both grabbed their heads when thrown to the ground. Notably, both players continued playing and were not assessed for concussion immediately afterwards.

Both players’ heads clearly struck the ground, with the tackler in each incident receiving a one-match suspension. Neither player intended to draw a free kick.

However, Bartel claims to have observed other players trying to exploit the situation.

“When players grab their head after a tackle—I’m not suggesting it didn’t hurt—but we’ve talked about this before regarding concussion,” Bartel shared on Nine’s Eddie and Jimmy podcast.

“If you’re clutching your head and staying down, you can’t look up (for the free kick) and then carry on for the next 15 minutes.”

“We’re witnessing a surge in that behaviour.”

Hird took things further, proposing that any player who holds their head post-tackle should automatically leave the field and undergo a 20-minute concussion assessment.

“If someone grabs their head, you’re off and get assessed, mate,” Hird stated.

“They’ll think twice if they know they’ll have to spend 20 minutes on the sidelines.”

“It’s something we detest in soccer—players deliberately collapsing, rolling around to sway the referee’s decision. We don’t want that in Aussie rules.”

“If a player comes off cradling their head, they should sit out for 20 minutes (for the concussion test).”

As an assistant coach at VFL side Port Melbourne, Hird remarked that they teach players to be judicious with tackling, noting how easily one can concede a free kick due to high contact or sling tackles, and how adept players are at drawing those fouls.

“I believe that if a player deliberately drops their head or raises their shoulder, umpires are becoming much more astute,” Hird commented.

“At Port Melbourne, we’re instructing players to refrain from tackling in some scenarios, instead opting to feign a tackle, as the player will often go down.

“We’ve advised that if you’re approaching a player who starts to drop, just pull back a bit and watch them hit the ground. They fall because if you tackle too high, the risk of giving away free kicks is significant.

“In one week, we committed 13 head-high tackles, which really frustrated me. I was saying to the guys, ‘Come on, lads!’”