Last year I became aware that punters like me could get hold of the DVD that was sent to clubs to apprise them of the umpiring interpretations to be in vogue for the season about to commence. This year, I determined to get hold of one and to see whether, as a player, coach or spectator, I was any the wiser after viewing it.

All I can say dear friends is don't waste your time. One thing is clear though! The umpires and the umpiring department clearly don't refer to the DVD each week!!

From a rules standpoint, I think the biggest blights on the game currently are the so-called "hands in the back" rule — or at least the nonsensical zero tolerance interpretation being employed — and the holding the ball interpretation where a player "dives" on the ball and it's then held to him by an opponent. I've lost track of the number of times I've seen umpires pay free kicks when they can't see the ball. Must have an aspirin and lie down before I get too upset. More on this topic later...

With 2 drawn games in consecutive weeks, nearly everyone seems to have some preferred method for breaking the draw. What with extra time and golden goals being touted, it wouldn't surprise to see the team captains settling down to a quick game of stud poker to decide the winner!

This is nonsense. Can we leave the game alone for a little while and see where it is headed? For 150 years, teams have managed to deal with the hollow feeling of a draw — for those who thought they would win, anyway.

What is it about the noughties that there has to be a winner? There are bigger problems with the game than an occasional draw — like the consistency of umpiring interpretations from quarter to quarter for instance!

I'm sure the AFL would vigourously deny it, but many will see equivalence between the three-week suspensions of Daniel Kerr and Josh Carr. What will stick in many a craw will be the notion that Kerr's headbut of Scott West was therefore equivalent to Carr's attempt to cork Gary Ablett Jnr's thigh. By its restructuring of its judicial arrangements to be process-driven rather than incident-driven, the AFL has unwittingly created the scenario where equivalence may be assumed.

In all the furore this week over 'champion' players being scragged and illegally impeded by taggers, it's worth noting that some of these champions react aggressively and others react by upping their impact on the game through hard work, determination and skill.

Daniel Kerr can consider himself lucky, especially in the wake of Barry Hall's momentary lapse of reason, but he will never be regarded alongside the champions of the game who, largely, manage to control their frustration and annoyance at the taggers. James Hird, Nathan Buckley, Chris Judd, Scott West and Gary Ablett Jnr come to mind as champions who overcame the tag through grit and skill.