There used to be more natural pauses in the game. There was a wait to get the ball back after a point, there was a casual meandering while the ruckmen caught up and the umpire got ready to bounce of the ball, you could take some time with a free kick rather than the umpire flapping his arms at you as soon as you looked up.
It's all go, go, go now.The players have to leave the ground just to catch their breath and they lose the flow of the game.
There were also less free kicks. Every contest is adjudicated like it's a judo tournament and the umpire has to award points. That's an unnatural pause, it's jarring to the flow of the game. The more rules you add, the more the game stops and restarts.
What you want is more uninterrupted passages of football, not more penalties.