The centre bounce is putting increasing physical and mental strains on umpires, a says AFLUA chief Peter Howe. Credit:John Donegan Another potential roadblock to getting rid of the bounce may also have been removed by the resignation last week of AFL commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick, a strong supporter of the tradition, along with former AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou. The AFL Laws of the Game committee is believed to have long been sympathetic to the umpires' cause, but has had attempts to remove the bounce completely stymied by the intransigence of conservative elements of the game's executive. The AFLUA says there are three good reasons to dispense totally with the bounce, the issue of fairness to competing ruckmen, the continuing difficulty of finding enough umpires to officiate at the elite level, and injuries. The last factor continues to plague senior umpires. Many have on-going treatment from doctors and physiotherapists for back injuries caused by repeated bouncing of the football. And two, Andrew Mitchell and Ben Ryan, both required shoulder reconstructions during the off-season.

"We want our best umpires on the park each and every week, and that's being impacted by injury," AFLUA chief executive Peter Howe said on Tuesday. "It's fair to say there's a large majority of senior umpires on the list who'd prefer not to bounce." Howe said the 2005 introduction of the 10-metre second circle in which ruckmen have to stand before contesting a centre bounce had significantly increased pressure on umpires to get their bounces straight. "We felt that that the bounce has probably been in its death throes from about that time because with the ruckman having less ability to move, it has to be straight, very straight to provide a fair contest." Currently, only about one in 10 centre bounces are recalled, at least 90 per cent last season deemed at least "contestable", but those which are brought back also increase the pressure. It's the pressure on guys to actually get it straight, which means they're bouncing significantly more than they ever have in practice.

"We're only bouncing around 30 times per game now, and each umpire probably only six to eight times, but it's the pressure on guys to actually get it straight, which means they're bouncing significantly more than they ever have in practice away from games, and that's certainly having an impact," Howe said. "The other part about that pressure is that it can have a huge impact on them psychologically. Putting up a poor bounce, having to recall it, then putting up another one puts the spotlight on them even more, which does impact on decision-making." Another major issue is many umpires coming into the elite level with limited experience at bouncing the ball given the vast bulk of grass roots competitions require the umpire only to throw the ball up. "Virtually no community footy around Australia has the bounce, so it's not being taught through junior level," Howe said. "Even in the SANFL, if you're not a 'pathway' umpire, you can throw the ball up. The art of bouncing has become a skill that often isn't taught until guys get into state league footy." Howe said the start of the AFL women's competition, where there are no centre bounces, also increased the premium on recruiting and retaining capable umpires, regardless of their ability to bounce the football.

"It's the age old argument that you might have the best decision-maker in the league, but if they can't bounce, they're going to be lost to AFL footy," he said. Loading "I think with the number of women coming into the game now, too, you have to ask do they necessarily have the same physical strength to be able to bounce. It's a closed skill, and that is going to impact on retention and recruitment." How said he would be surprised if the abolition of the bounce caused any great ructions among the football public. "I can't see 'Joe Public' getting upset and leaving the game because the umpire doesn't bounce the footy," he said.