The AFL is standing by goal review umpire, Ray Charles, who is believed to have made the highly criticised call of ‘behind’ during Richmond’s win over St Kilda.
“Ray’s been doing a fantastic job, anyone can see that…well almost anyone” said CEO, Gillon McLachlan.
Some argue that Mr Charles only holds his position due to the AFL’s efforts to increase their employment of previously underrepresented groups, even if they’re not ideally suited to the role.
“The fact that Ray is blind and deceased has nothing to do with why we hired him, and in no way affects his ability to meet our standards” insisted McLachlan.
“Vision impaired people in particular are very well represented in the AFL, as you’ll notice with our umpires, executives, and even our commentators”.
Many fans were confused after the replay confirmed the original decision that Richmond had kicked a goal was correct, but McLachlan was adamant people are just being negative.
“What we should be focusing on, is that for the first time ever we had a goal review where you could clearly see what happened, instead of it looking like we’re missing 6 critical frames or being as blurry as pausing Basic Instinct on a VCR.
“The actual decision is as irrelevant as St Kilda’s season”.
