Is it finally time for the AFL to invest more in umpiring resources?

Umpiring a game as frantic as Aussie Rules football is a huge challenge for all of our adjudicators.

As we have heard before time and time again without the umpires there is no game highlighting the importance of supporting the umpires at the highest level and locally.

The AFL, a billion-dollar industry in which the 10-member executive team earned a combined 13.6 million dollars last year, are still under-investing in umpiring.

Aussie Rules Football is a 360-degree sport and the unpredictable nature of the game is what fans love about it.

The league has a rule book with fingernail-deep technicalities that can even confuse experts of the game at times and the league expects the umpires to figure it all out.

This game is one of the only codes that decide to change their adjudications mid-season.

Altering the holding-the-ball rule and what decides prior opportunity this year continues to divide lovers of the game with umpires seemingly picking the change up on the go as best as they can.

You would be forgiven for believing AFL umpires are full-time professionals, but still, in 2024 they are working part-time.

This obviously has been an issue spoken about many times before however given the tumultuous season the umpires have had it only makes sense to bring the discussion back on the table.

From the non-holding the ball call in the Essendon and Adelaide Crows game to the non-50 metre penalty in the North and Pies match field umpiring hasn’t been at the required standard.

Poor decision-making has been a commonality for not just our field umpires, but the unnecessary goal reviews from the goal umpires who misread the moment and subdue celebrations even though the ARC review system checked every goal anyway.

This month, the AFL CEO Andrew Dillion said this year’s quality of umpiring was “as good as it’s ever been”.

All the AFL umpires would have appreciated the CEO defending them but l think they would even more appreciate proper investment instead.

Some AFL umpires though like being part-time and would rather focus on their own professional careers.

On SEN in 2020 field umpire Ray Chamberlain said “It is not a full-time gig… the full-time thing, it’s got hair on it.”

This comment was made in the initial stages of the COVID pandemic where having another job available in his case working in the mortgage and finance industry was useful.

Times have changed since then and if AFL umpires want to continue working part-time the league should simply move them on.

In 2021, a review made by the AFL into why umpire numbers in local leagues were down found 18 per cent quit due to study/work commitments and 13 per cent due to inadequate support/pay.

Going full-time would allow greater pay for the umpires and inspire the younger generation to believe umpiring is a potential career that can be followed.

AFL umpires can be paid anywhere between 40-150k depending on experience and the type of umpire you are.

These greater opportunities could result in a more efficient changeover of umpires. The umpires officiating the Fremantle and Melbourne match this weekend have an average age of 36 years of age.

The high age of umpires, many of whom are in their forties, are more injury prone. These umpires only train together twice a week, don’t even have a consistent training venue and are expected to execute their skills on the biggest stage.

The AFL could look over to their rival code the NRL for inspiration who gave their best referees a 30 per cent pay rise in 2022.

Yes, the NRL adopts only one field referee per match compared to the 43 field, 43 boundary and 26 goal umpires the AFL have on their books but the NRL have acted proficiently in ensuring a minimum of 22 referees are full-time.

In the AFL world, it’s all about the optics. The right optic in this instance would be putting umpires first for a change.