Latest news with #umpiring
Telegraph
a day ago
- Sport
- Telegraph
Australia embroiled in third umpire controversy amid West Indies fury
West Indies head coach Daren Sammy asked whether there was 'something against our team' after Australia benefited from two controversial decisions from the third umpire in their Test match. After two days in Barbados, the Test is evenly poised, with Australia making 92 for four in their second innings, a lead of just 82 runs. But Australia's position would be far worse were it not for two decisions made by Adrian Holdstock, the third umpire who hails from South Africa. 'I have noticed, especially with this particular umpire, it's something that for me started in England,' Sammy said, referring to Holdstock. 'It's frustrating. I just ask for consistency in the decision-making. 'You don't want to get yourself in a situation where you're wondering about certain umpires. Is there something against this team? But when you see decision after decision, then it raises the question. I know he's here for the series. You don't want to go in a Test match having that doubt. 'You don't want to be going into a Test match not trusting the umpires. And that's not what our team is about. So we're just looking for some clarity as to the decisions.' After the second day's play at Kensington Oval, Sammy reportedly met with match referee Javagal Srinath to understand the TV umpire's thinking. When asked whether he could make a formal complaint about Holdstock, Sammy said: 'You'll have to wait and see for that.' The first incident: Chase, lbw b Cummins, 44 Captain Roston Chase and Shai Hope had shared a partnership of 67 to put West Indies in the ascendancy. A ball from Pat Cummins caught Chase on the crease, and he was given out lbw on the field. Chase then reviewed the decision. UltraEdge appeared to show a spike when the ball passed the bat – suggesting an inside edge, which would have led to the leg-before decision being overturned. But Holdstock said that there was a clear gap between bat and ball. Chase remained given out, to Sammy's surprise. 'In our opinion, we saw the ball deviated onto the pad,' Sammy said. The second incident: Hope c Carey b Webster 48 Eight overs later Hope – West Indies's top scorer with 48 – then fell victim to a controversial decision too. A delivery on a good length from Beau Webster seamed in and found Hope's inside edge. Diving at full stretch to his left, wicketkeeper Alex Carey claimed the catch. But the on-field umpires checked whether Carey had caught the ball cleanly in his outstretched left glove. Replays appeared to suggest that part of the ball was touching the ground as his glove landed on the ground, although the ball never fell out of the glove. Holdstock adjudged that the ball was caught cleanly, leading to Hope being dismissed. OUT or NOT OUT?🤔 Alex Carey's catch to dismiss Shai Hope could spark debate. 📸: Twitter/X — CricTracker (@Cricketracker) June 27, 2025 Sammy said that after a similar incident occurred in Australia's first innings, when Travis Head was batting, Holdstock declared the batsman not out, accusing the third umpire of inconsistency. 'I'm just saying, judge what you see,' Sammy said. 'If you see the same thing and one is not out, there is even more doubt on the other one that you give it out. Again, I don't know what he's seen but from the images that we've seen, the decisions are not fair enough for both teams. We're all humans. Mistakes will be made. I just want fairness.' Australia's Mitchell Starc admitted that he thought that Head's edge the previous day was out. Starc suggested that the technology was not functioning well in Barbados. 'There's been some interesting ones,' Starc said. 'Obviously a couple more have gone against the West Indies than us.' Australia appeared to suffer from one earlier decision in West Indies's innings, with Chase seemingly leg-before to Josh Hazlewood on one. After reviewing the decision, and seeing Chase struck plumb in line with the stumps, Australia's players started celebrating, but Holdstock found that Chase got an inside edge before he was struck. 'One for us [against Chase] looked like there was a gap between the bat and the ball, it cost us 40-odd runs, but then a contentious one to then get the wicket,' Starc said. 'As players, you can only ask a question. We don't use the technology to make that decision. It sort of felt like, or looked like, that the Snicko and the images were out of sync to some capacity.'
Times of Oman
a day ago
- Sport
- Times of Oman
Daren Sammy raises concerns over TV umpiring after controversial decisions in Barbados Test
Bridgetown: West Indies head coach Daren Sammy has voiced his concerns over the performance of TV umpire Adrian Holdstock during the first Test against Australia in Barbados, following a series of contentious review decisions on Day 2, as per ESPNcricinfo. Sammy reportedly met with match referee Javagal Srinath after the day's play to seek clarification regarding multiple decisions that didn't go in the West Indies' favour. He also expressed his concerns about Holdstock's officiating during the recent ODI series in England, where the South African umpire served as TV umpire in two games and stood on the field in another. Two key moments on the second day left the West Indies camp frustrated. The first was the dismissal of captain Roston Chase, adjudged lbw to Pat Cummins, despite what West Indies believed was clear evidence of an inside edge. The second was the wicket of Shai Hope, who was caught behind by Alex Carey off Beau Webster. The catch was deemed clean after a review by the third umpire. "We are just trying to find some sort of understanding as to what the process is," Sammy said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo. "We only hope for consistency. That's all we could ask for. When there is doubt in something, just be consistent across the board," he added. "I have noticed, especially with this particular umpire, it's something that for me started in England. It's frustrating. I just ask for consistency in the decision-making," he noted. "Yeah, look, you don't want to get yourself in a situation where you're wondering about certain umpires. Is there something against this team? But when you see decision after decision, then it raises the question. I know he's here for the series. You don't want to go in a Test match having that doubt," Sammy said. "So I want to have that conversation as to the process... so we could be all clear. Because, at the end of the day, you don't want to be going into a Test match not trusting the umpires. And that's not what our team is about. So we're just looking for some clarity as to the decisions," he noted. "You'll have to wait and see for that," when Sammy was asked whether West Indies would be lodging a formal complaint, he said. Speaking on Chase's dismissal, which came just after lunch, breaking a 67-run partnership with Hope, Sammy said, "In our opinion, we saw the ball deviated onto the pad." While Sammy didn't explicitly dispute the decision on Hope's dismissal, he referenced a similar incident from the previous day, when a catch taken by Hope to dismiss Travis Head was ruled not to have carried. "I'm just saying, judge what you see," Sammy said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo. "If you see the same thing and one is not out, there is even more doubt on the other one than you give it out. Again, I don't know what he's seen but from the images that we've seen, the decisions are not fair enough for both teams. We're all humans. Mistakes will be made. I just want fairness," he added. Australia also had their share of discontent. In the first over of Day 2, they reviewed an lbw call against Chase, convinced the ball had struck the pad first. While initial replays seemed to support their claim, Holdstock judged there was insufficient evidence to overturn the on-field decision. Fast bowler Mitchell Starc later questioned whether the visuals and audio in the replays were correctly synced. "There's been some interesting ones," Starc said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo. "Obviously, a couple more have gone against the West Indies than us. One for us (against Chase) looked like there was a gap between the bat and the ball, it cost us 40-odd runs, but then a contentious one to then get the wicket," he added. "As players, you can only ask a question. We don't use the technology to make that decision. It sort of felt like, or looked like, that the Snicko and the images were out of sync to some capacity," he noted. Starc also maintained that Head's edge to Hope on the opening day looked out to them. Sammy, mindful of the protocols surrounding criticism of officials, revealed that he had instructed his players not to comment publicly on the decisions after the game. "We know the rules. We know fines going all across the board," he said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Collingwood chat to AFL about Daicos tagging tactics
Collingwood coach Craig McRae has spoken with the AFL about the umpiring of Nick Daicos after tactics to quell the Magpies superstar roared back into the spotlight. St Kilda tagger Marcus Windhager was fined for striking Daicos in one of several incidents that occurred during their battle in Collingwood's 34-point win last Saturday. McRae used a phone call from AFL coaching engagement manager Dan Richardson this week as an opportunity to ask about the treatment of the Brownlow Medal contender. " ... nothing untoward. (Richardson) rang me about another issue, and I just 'wondered what your take is on what's going on'," McRae said on Thursday. "I spoke to the umpires at training (on Thursday), and we don't want to create a story that's not there, just an awareness of how they see things. "We're here to protect our talent in the game, and Nick's someone we want to make sure we support. "In hindsight and review of this performance, we were rapt with how we looked after Nick (against St Kilda)." West Coast coach Andrew McQualter almost guaranteed he would send someone to tag Daicos when the Eagles travel to Marvel Stadium for Saturday night's top-versus-bottom clash. Brady Hough shapes as West Coast's first-choice defensive option after his role in slowing down Geelong flyer Bailey Smith after quarter-time in round 12. Before last week's game, McRae had a dig about the Saints' tagging efforts on Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli, when St Kilda still lost by 72 points. McRae believes Collingwood could be a better team when Daicos is heavily tagged due to the opposition being focused too much on one player. He also revealed he had shared intel from his time in Brisbane when he played with Simon Black, who starred in three Lions premierships from 2001 to 2003. "Simon Black was the best (at dealing with a tag) I'd seen in my time ... I'm probably over-sharing, but I sort of gave little things that Blacky used to do to Nick," McRae said. "He's a high-end talent, Nick, and this is a progression. "The best players have to cope with this, and this is part of Nick's journey right now. "There's a level of eyes on him, and I was pleased to hear that. "There's four umpires and they're looking for things, particularly around stoppage." McRae's comments come a day after Daicos, who is contracted at Collingwood until the end of 2029, told The Age he wouldn't "rule anything out" when asked about the new Tasmania team. Daicos will be right at the top of the Devils' hit-list ahead of their slated inclusion in the AFL for the 2028 season. "If Nick goes to Tassie, I'm going with him. It's a double deal," McRae joked. Premiership defender Brayden Maynard will be held back for another week, despite pushing his case at training on Thursday in a bid to return from a plantar fascia rupture. "Are we being conservative? Maybe. But he won't play this week," McRae said of Maynard. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Collingwood Football Club (@collingwood_fc) Young forward Charlie West was on Tuesday named to make his AFL debut after starring at VFL level. McRae confirmed defender Charlie Dean would also play against the Eagles, as Collingwood look to replace Beau McCreery and Billy Frampton.
News.com.au
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Danny O'Brien racing manager Jack Howard to make AFL field umpire debut in Richmond-Sydney clash at MCG
Jack Howard, an Australian Rules field umpire and racing manager for Flemington trainer Danny O'Brien, is set for a dream AFL debut on Saturday at the MCG. The passionate AFL-listed whistleblower, called up for the Richmond-Sydney clash, has officiated the past two VFL grand finals and performed well in the state league. • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! 'It was a bit more relief for me but you do realise how important it is when you start calling friends and family and they're just over the moon,' Howard said. 'The old man burst into tears … they've (parents) sacrificed a lot, a lot before I got my licence, driving me around.' Howard started umpiring Essendon District junior football at 12 and advanced into senior ranks, including a career-shaping season in Darwin, with a goal to make the AFL. Working in racing the past decade, a stable hand initially mucking out boxes before going to university to complete a teaching degree, has steeled field umpire Howard. 'I've sort of chosen three careers in my life where you get more criticism than praise and they've all helped with each other,' Howard said. Howard credited the ongoing support of Melbourne Cup-winning trainer O'Brien and stable general manager Matt Harrington. 'It's been a sustained couple of years of really putting my head down,' Howard said. 'I had a good chat with Danny four years ago and had to make a decision whether I continued on … set some goals I had to achieve and got them. 'I couldn't have done it without his and Matt's support … It helps Danny and Matt love footy and we've got a great group of staff … that allow me to chase both careers.' Howard conceded Monday footy banter could become tricky should he be allocated any Hawthorn (O'Brien) or North Melbourne (Harrington) games in the future. 'I have joked I might have to chuck a sickie on a Monday to let the water go under the bridge before I walk back into the office,' Howard laughed. 'To be honest, outside the standard banter there's not a lot of football discussion, especially umpiring and that. 'They understand it's a difficult job and very much like racing, you get a lot more criticism than you do pats on the back for it.' O'Brien is able to be at the MCG to support Howard, with one important stable runner on Saturday, Politely Dun, in the Group 1 Queensland Derby. 'Dan's decided he's going to come along to the 'G, it just shows the support I've got from him and his family,' Howard said. 'When I told them (Danny and wife Nina on) Monday when I found out they were over the moon.' The Richmond-Sydney match should be finished in time, and Brownlow votes logged accordingly, for Howard to catch the Queensland Derby live at 3.52pm. 'It's actually worked out well,' Howard said. 'We don't have any runners at Flemington this week and Politely Dun in the rescheduled Queensland Derby. 'He's a really good chance up there, I really like the horse. It would be, hopefully, a great day for the stable.'
Daily Mail
03-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Footy legend Nick Riewoldt slams the AFL for being TOO WOKE to take action over the most powerful woman in the game
Footy legend Nick Riewoldt has taken aim at the AFL for not demoting executive general manager of football Laura Kane sooner, labelling them 'social justice warriors'. The AFL announced last week that Kane's AFL football operations role will be split into two roles, with the 34-year-old no longer overseeing key football areas. Kane has become a lightning rod for criticism this season over issues such as the Willie Rioli saga, the standard of umpiring and AFL miscommunication around what happened when Collingwood player Lachie Schultz was concussed in a game against Fremantle. A separate head of football performance role is now being created . Kane will continue to oversee the AFL and AFLW, plus the VFL and VFLW and a newly formed medical and healthcare team that will oversee areas including mental health and concussion. It was confirmed on Monday that Lions chief executive officer Greg Swann will take on the role as the head of football performance. Riewoldt said Swann's arrival is long overdue. 'If the AFL weren't so consumed with being social justice warriors, Laura Kane would have been moved aside 12 months ago,' he said on Channel 7's The Agenda Setters on Monday night. 'It is (a win) now. Either the role was too big, or she was the wrong person (for the job).' AFL chief Andrew Dillon insists there's nothing personal in the demotion of Kane. 'It was a big, big role,' Dillon told SEN radio on Friday. 'Decisions affect people but they're not personal. 'It's actually about what's the right thing for the AFL, not just for now, because the AFL's in an incredible position at the moment. ' ... We have now got a structure that actually allows us to continue to be successful for the next three to five years and that was the thinking.' In a separate interview on ABC Radio, Dillon rejected the notion that unconscious gender bias was a factor in Kane's dealings with clubs and subsequent demotion. 'It's not a gender thing,' he said. 'Laura has broken down a lot of barriers. She is an incredibly talented administrator.' Swann, who has been involved in club administration for more than 25 years, will oversee hot issues including the match review system, umpiring and laws of the game. 'I'm leaving to go the AFL to head up footy, I suppose, in the simplest terms,' Swann said when he confirmed his appointment to Lions colleagues. Lions coach Chris Fagan said Swann would be a major boost for the AFL. 'I'm really pleased for Swanny, it will be great for the game,' he said. 'He's one of those composed, calm and experienced people. We're obviously sad to lose him ... but things don't last forever. 'ln this instance, it will be a great win for the AFL. 'He'll help bring another angle to decision making that perhaps hasn't been there in recent times.'
