Footy is a bit weird in that we let players physically assault other players in dead ball situations. Imagine a basketball, rugby or soccer match where players just started banging into each other for no reason? Aussie Rules always seemed a bit strange to me in that respect.
So it’s always going to be a bit arbitrary where you draw the line on that sort of offball stuff. Tummy taps are hard to officiate, because it’s basically impossible to tell how hard the punch is and how over-egged the reaction. I suppose you could just suspend everyone who does it, but then you’re rubbing out players for very minor indiscretions.
I thought the AFL was onto something with the strikes policy, but they had a hard time committing to it.
