INTERPRETATION of holding the ball should become more consistent as the season unfolds, says Geelong coach Chris Scott.
After the Cats lost the free kick count 28-12 against North Melbourne (the third time in a row they have been on the wrong end), Scott was asked on Wednesday his view on how holding the ball was being interpreted.
He said the game was still adjusting but he remained a supporter of the intent behind the new interpretation, which is a crackdown on prior opportunity.
"When it is being adjudicated really well it is really helpful to the flow of the game," Scott said.
"Whenever you make a slight change to the interpretation of a rule there is a settling in period and there are a lot of umpires that might see it slightly differently. I think over time that consistency might improve."
Scott said he had been disappointed with the reaction of the team at times when free kicks went against them and that was an area the players could improve.
"I'm a bit of a believer that you make your own luck and the only thing we can really control is the way we respond to those free kicks," Scott said.
"As a group we were a bit disappointed with some of the lazy free kicks we gave away and then our reaction. I don't think that helped anyone."
Geelong midfielder Josh Caddy has had eight free kicks paid against him so far this season and received one while Joel Selwood has earned 14 and given away seven.
The Cats have a differential of minus 26 in the free kick count having received 61 and given away 87, with only St Kilda at minus 30 having a worse differential.
Scott emphasised the last thing anyone would hear him complaining about was the free kick count when coaching a team that had won just one of their first four games.
"The last thing you'll hear from my lips, at least this week, will be complaints about umpires given our current predicament. They are not having anywhere near the influence on our performance as we are," Scott said.
Stricter policing of two-on-one marking contests has also been tightened in 2015.
