AFL admits clock error
04/05/2008 4:20 PM
The AFL has admitted its timekeepers made an error late in the Richmond-St Kilda clash at Telstra Dome which could have cost the Tigers a chance of victory.
For the second week in a row, AFL Football Operations Manager Adrian Anderson has had to admit that an error was made late in a tight match would could have influenced a result.
The timekeepers left the clock running late in the final quarter of the match on Saturday night at Telstra Dome after failing to register to stop the clock for a signal for time-on from umpire Stuart Wenn. It meant the match finished 11 seconds earlier than it should have.
"The error occurred when the clock should have been stopped when umpire Wenn called time-on re-calling a kick out in the last quarter," the AFL statement said.
St Kilda won the game by three points after a kick from Richmond's Jack Riewoldt after the siren failed to register a score. Tigers coach Terry Wallace was ropable after the match, saying the error had cost his side its chance at victory, and Riewoldt a chance to find a target closer to goal.
"We'd love to have that 10 seconds to be able to make the right decisions at the end of the game," he said.
It is the second time in as many weeks that a timekeeping error could have influenced the result of the match. Nine seconds was lost in the Fremantle-Geelong match at Subiaco, a match which finished with the Cats up by a point, but the ball deep in Fremantle's forward line.