Richmond coach Damien Hardwick has hit out at the umpiring during the Tigers' eight-point win over Essendon on Friday night.
The final free kick count went the way of the Bombers 27-15, and while Hardwick wasn't overly bemused by the 27, he was a bit unsure how his side only received 15 throughout the game.
"It was a frustrating night, there’s no doubt," Hardwick said during the post match press conference when being asked about the umpiring.
"Once again it's not the free kicks that we give away – the vast majority, 80 per cent, (of those) are there – but it’s the ones we don't get that probably I find a little bit frustrating.
"I look at Jack tonight and I thought, 'You know what – he doesn’t get much.' Hmm.
"And I look at the other end and think, 'Ooh, I wish he was playing (at) the other end.'
"Once again, it's a very, very hard game to adjudicate. The ball was played in our half early days.
"Jack normally perseveres with that. He doesn't blame, doesn't complain – he just gets on with it and jumps at the ball.
"It is what it is. Not much we can do about it. Hopefully we’ll get a better result next week."
Across the 2018 season, the Tigers average 17.9 frees for per game - which is 18th in the competition - while also giving away a league high 23.1 frees against per game.
It'll be the second year in a row in which the Tigers finish the home-and-away season giving away the most free kicks of any side in the competition.
