A whistle too far? AFL outrage machine cranks up over umpire dissent rules

Stephen Coniglio of the Giants appeals to the umpire during the round three AFL match against Carlton. Photograph: Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

“At times, we do over-complicate AFL,” the GWS footballer Stephen Coniglio once said.

And that was before he gave away a free kick for a particularly Italian protest to an umpire, becoming the central figure in another round of officiating controversy, and the subject of – even by AFL House standards – a particularly odd media statement.