AFL Is Home Of The Cheap Shot
Willi Rioli is in trouble for carrying things too far in the internecine trench warfare that goes on during AFL matches. The AFL is the home of the cheap shot. Unsportsmanlike behaviour is rife in games with players illegally slapping and bumping usually from behind. This stuff must come from the coaches and is part of some sort of psychological warfare to gain an edge on the day over their opponents. The unexpected hit from behind and trash talk are marring our great game. It is not a good look; and in Willi Rioli’s case things have gotten out of hand.
Illegal AFL Byplay & Willi Rioli
There is a weak version of leadership installed currently at AFL HQ. They seem to be watching on whilst the game descends into a morass of unsportsmanlike behaviour on field and it is spilling over into the fetid realm of social media. Veiled death threats intersecting with good old Australian racism by the fans is the result in the Rioli situation. An angry young man, a warrior by nature it seems, is caught up in something which is more than a game. Football clubs and their fans take footy way too seriously downunder. The passion to achieve victory is being exploited by this tacit encouragement of behind the play jostling and cheap shots.
Cheap Shots From Behind Are No Sign Of Toughness In AFL
These coaches are encouraging their charges to bully opponents wherever possible, which says more about the character of these coaches than anything else. The tackled player prostrate on the ground is subjected to further violence in an unnecessary encore action slamming head and shoulders down. This bullying is tough stuff, according to these coaches who sanction this unsportsmanlike behaviour. They are polluting the great game of AFL and defiling it for all to see at the game and on TV. Apparently, this body of men are whinging about not being paid enough as assistant coaches. Perhaps, this is their revenge on the AFL management by actively encouraging ugliness in the game. Their jealousy toward players earning millions and head coaches not far behind must be frustrating in the ego driven world of elite sports.
“More claims of threats towards opposition players have emerged against Port Adelaide’s Willie Rioli, with three different clubs now involved. The claims range from threats made on the field to at least one made via a message off the field.”
The Spiteful AFL & Social Media
AFL is home of the cheap shot in season 2025. Players are dissenting acrimoniously in this atmosphere of nasty tit for tat spite so prevalent on the field. Is it any wonder that Willi Rioli might be taking things a mite too far? I mean he leaves the field and cops a barrage load of vile racist taunts and death threats on social media. Yes, that does not condone his behaviour but let’s see it for what is really going on at this point in time. Social media is a shit show of antagonism. I mean the algorithms are set up this way to drive traffic and engagement from enraging the viewers. The players are young men by and large. The fans a mixed bag, I suppose. This situation calls for leadership but it is sadly missing – MIA, right now.
“Power football boss Chris Davies said it hadn’t been an easy time for Rioli but he knew he needed to front up and answer questions from the AFL and do whatever he could to move the situation forward.
“With what he’s gone through in the last 24 hours, not taking away from the fact that we’re dealing with a real issue here, it’s fair that he will see how he goes after training (to decide if he plays against the Crows),” Davies said. “
Get The Unsportsmanlike Behaviour Out Of The Game
In the current global environment, this is not like the fake entertainment of World Championship Wrestling back in the day. This nasty behaviour has crossed over the line and encouraging teams to hate each other to attract extra viewers is not a sensible policy. Take the bullying and cheap shots out of AFL – the game does not need it. Pull these coaches back into line re-unsportsmanlike player behaviour. Revenue raising on the back of fines for melees is not the main game here. You are losing fans, especially mums who watch this spiteful and violent stuff. Would they really want their kids exposed to copycat behaviour of this ilk? The umpires are copping so much dissent right now in a game that is bloody hard to umpire. The fury on the field is toxic at this moment in time. The temperature needs taking down. AFL may be entertainment but they are all real human beings out there despite their worth as cattle.
I heard one blow hard ex-player commentator describing one current player as the Don King of AFL. This Trumpian celebration of low acts and cheap shots seems to be embraced by the AFL media. What will it take a Willi Rioli with a gun? Does the game really need the clowns egging on the crowd to revel in violence to flourish?
“If these footy faces in the media give you a headache, then, going directly to the source might save you the need for relief in terms of your hearing.”
Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of America Matters: Pre-apocalyptic Posts & Essays in the Shadow of Trump.
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