THE AFL is keen to make umpires more accessible and accountable for their decisions.

The league is open to the idea of offering broadcasters a member of the umpiring department during games to talk audiences through contentious decisions.

The idea, which still needs to be fleshed out at AFL headquarters and is no certainty to be introduced, is that an umpiring official would be made available to the broadcaster at either a quarter break or after the match to answer any questions from the commentary team.

Foxfooty.com.au understands the idea was floated to broadcasters late last week.

Round 18

The AFL has been satisfied with the reaction to placing new match review boss Michael Christian in front of the media, believing he has provided more clarity on grey areas.

They hope doing similar with the umpiring department would clear up any confusion as to their decision-making process on certain incidents.

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It’s understood the umpiring department is open to the idea, but would like to discuss decisions with officials first before going on-air to respond to questions.

It’s not yet clear whether an umpire involved in the game, or a member of the umpiring department, would be made available to talk through the decisions.

Selecting the right umpire to talk openly through decisions would be a crucial element if the initiative was to become a permanent part of broadcasts.

Senior officials with previous media exposure such as Matt Stevic and Shaun Ryan would be far more equipped to deal with curly questions and tough calls than a junior umpire.

Two years ago umpire and former St Kilda footballer Leigh Fisher answered questions to the host broadcaster, but the experiment has not been trialled again.

Fremantle great Matthew Pavlich believes that, if introduced, the process would lessen the frustrations of fans watching on at home.

“It was always good to have decisions explained while on the field, because that would often dissipate some angst you had towards umpires,” Pavlich told foxfooty.com.au.

“If it comes in, this is an opportunity for the media and the general public to fully understand why a decision has been made.”