AFL free kick differential ladder: No wonder Essendon is complaining

Essendon has approached the AFL and its umpiring department regarding the lopsided free kick numbers against the club in its game against Collingwood last Sunday.

The Magpies were awarded 26 frees to the Bombers 17 in a display that had Essendon fans screaming for the umpires’ blood from the early stages.

A week earlier the Bombers were on the wrong side of the ledger again with an 11-21 count against North Melbourne.

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"There's a level of concern around and we would like to get to the bottom of it if we can,” Essendon football manager Dan Richardson told the Herald Sun on Monday evening.

"I've had a couple of discussions with (Steve Hocking, AFL head of football) personally and 'Woosha' has had some contact with Hayden (Kennedy, head of umpiring) as well.

"There may well be something wrong with how we're coaching our players.

"Is there issues with our approach technically, or are there examples of where the umpires are getting it wrong?

"We're not suggesting that umpiring is the reason why we win or lose, you just want clarification on consistency.”

Essendon is the second worst club in the league for free kick differential with 274 frees coming their way compared to 331 against the Bombers.

Collingwood is the most favoured club in the league (351 for, 275 against) and North Melbourne the second best.

Free kick differential ladder *

* Composed by Triple M