CLUBS have been given a stern warning from the AFL that the League is going to start enforcing penalties against players or officials who criticise umpiring calls or the Match Review Officer and Tribunal system.
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon and football operations boss Greg Swann told club chief executives on Tuesday that the League would start to come down harder on public commentary about umpiring and judicial decisions.
As part of the second day of discussions in the club summit, Dillon and Swann reinforced the rules around public commentary on umpiring or Tribunal matters, telling clubs the recent examples of Damien Hardwick and Jy Simpkin would be penalised in future.
Hardwick was last week warned by the League after his comments about the umpiring at GMHBA Stadium in the Suns' loss to Geelong, while Simpkin called the League's MRO "laughable" after Paul Curtis' three-week rough conduct suspension was upheld by the Tribunal.
Dillon and Swann are understood to have told the club bosses on Tuesday that while there wouldn't be agreement on every decision and not every decision will be correct, there have been too many occasions this season where commentary from coaches and players has been unacceptable in the AFL's eyes.
The AFL cited a flow-on effect for community football in attracting umpires and officials.
Clubs were reminded of two specific rules at the conference on Tuesday:
* Under AFL Regulation 15.1 - Public Comments on Umpires - any person subject to the AFL Regulations or AFL Rules must not make public comment about an umpire or a decision made by an umpire.
* Under AFL Regulation 19.18 - Public Comment and Criticism - no person subject to the AFL Regulations may make unfair, unreasonable or excessive public criticism of the Match Review Officer, a Tribunal decision, any member of the Tribunal, or any other matter concerning the Match Review Officer, Tribunal or a determination made by either.
Tuesday's part of the CEOs meeting followed key meetings on Monday where clubs were briefed on four possible fixture structures for the AFL once Tasmania enters the competition in 2028.
The Devils' list rules were again run through for clubs on Tuesday as well ahead of their entry into the League, with the second day of the summit largely dedicated to football matters.
Clubs were given an update on some of the priorities for the next Collective Bargaining Agreement talks, which included the potential capping of contract lengths, as AFL.com.au revealed last week would be on the agenda.
Some non-Victorian clubs voiced their concerns around capping deal lengths as offering longer deals was a competitive advantage for them to attract and retain players. Looking at list sizes and second-tier competitions was also raised as part of the broad discussions.
Clubs were also taken through the AFL's latest advancements with AI.
