The problem with umpires is people trying to create this impossible idea of a consistent approach. I'll tell you who's fault that is. Bloody coaches.
The best thing for making a decision on a loosely written rule, in a rapidly moving game is a human brain. Yet they've spent the last 20 years trying to remove that aspect from umpiring, with their guidelines and their technical interpretations that remove any context from the decision making process. So we get ridiculous ideas like 'hands in the back' or the current wave of deliberate out of bounds decisions, which is pretty much just anyone kicking the ball forward and having it go out of bounds.
Umpires need to be given back the ability to make subjective decisions around the way the game is being played. Yes, there will be inconsistency but there is anyway. At least if umpires are allowed to use more judgement, good umpires making their own decisions will have less impact on the game than they do now where they have to follow strict guidelines set out by a rules committee in December.
