UMPIRES director Jeff Gieschen says the ump who penalised Port Adelaide forward Daniel Motlop in the dying minutes of Saturday’s cracking game against Hawthorn was spot-on for doing so.

Motlop was pinged for “smothering” umpire Hayden Kennedy’s bounce in the teeth of goal, not allowing the bounce to reach the height of its arc but instead attempting to gain possession off the ground before either ruckman got their hands to it.

Gieschen says Motlop was penalised under rule 15.5 (e), a section set out for “free kicks relating to umpires”.

The rule states that “a free kick shall be awarded against the player or official who intentionally, recklessly or negligently engages in conduct which affects, interferes with or prevents an umpire from performing his or her duties”.

Gieschen said he could only recall one previous occasion in his time that an umpire had been forced to penalise a team for impeding his duties, but was certain Kennedy, who free-kicked the Power forward on Saturday, had got it 100 per cent right.

“The umpire’s job in that area is to bounce the footy,” Gieschen said of the Motlop incident.

“He [Kennedy] didn’t get an opportunity for that bounce to be properly executed because it was smothered by Daniel trying to grab it before anybody else, so that’s why the free kick was paid.

“Hayden Kennedy applied a correct free kick for that situation.”

The Power had trailed by less than two kicks at the time and was pressing for a goal to help it pull off what would have been another memorable win in Tasmania.

Motlop’s attempted gather was one of the more radical moves seen on the footy field in recent times.

It was just one of the highlights on a dramatic day at Aurora Stadium, with Hawk forward Mark Williams later sealing the match for Hawthorn and creating controversy with his choking gesture.