Kane Cornes has called on umpires to stop awarding free kicks to Richmond star Dylan Grimes who should be identified as a “serial stager”.
The dual premiership Tiger went to ground easily after taking a mark during the third quarter in Friday night’s win over Geelong that resulted in a 50-metre penalty.
Grimes was fined for a second staging offence during the Dreamtime match against Essendon in Round 13 but the Tigers successfully overturned the financial sanction at the Tribunal.
“I don’t blame him (for staging) because the umpires keep paying it (free kicks). Clearly he’s put a lot extra on that and he gets a 50-metre penalty,” Cornes told AFL Media’s The Round So Far.
“Until the umpires want to stamp this out and stop paying it … because we’ve seen all of these are rewarded with free kicks.
“We know what happened there when Essendon kicked the goal through (Anthony) McDonald-Tipungwuti and it came back, and we’re seeing this one here against the Western Bulldogs – all are awarded with free kicks.
“What the umpires have to do is identify Dylan Grimes as a serial stager, someone who continually exaggerates contact and not pay the free kicks, that’s the only way he’ll stop doing it.
“It’s a shame because he was the best player on the ground.”
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