Looks like it wasn't just the fans giving it to the umpires after the game last week.
Injured Blues Marc Murphy and Jeremy Laidler say sorry for Twitter outburst
AAP From: Herald Sun June 15, 2012 6:38PM
CARLTON players Marc Murphy and Jeremy Laidler have apologised to the AFL after the injured pair's outbursts fuelled fans' anger over umpiring decisions.
And Richmond has been fined $5000 after one of its trainers abused a field umpire in the aftermath of last weekend's narrow loss to Fremantle.
AFL chief Andrew Demetriou says they are likely to face fines for their statements on Twitter after Carlton's loss to West Coast on Thursday night.
"I understand (AFL general manager of football operations) Adrian Anderson is preparing a 'please explain' letter to both of those gentlemen," Demetriou told reporters on Friday.
"Everyone knows commenting on umpires, whether it's through Facebook, Twitter, email, press conference, over a radio interview is unacceptable.
"There's zero tolerance about that."
The Blues released a statement late on Friday afternoon saying both players agreed their comments were unfortunate.
"I was certainly frustrated and confused by how the rule was being applied, as were the commentators," Laidler
said.
"However it was not meant to be derogatory of the umpire."
Laidler and Murphy stressed they had great respect for umpires.
"I understand my tweet could have been interpreted as criticism towards umpires and, in hindsight, should have considered the wording more," Murphy said.
Demetriou said the AFL found it extremely difficult to recruit umpires.
"We will not accept any criticism of umpires and everyone knows that," he said.
"Our players know that and they've been told about social media and its pitfalls.
"Adrian will deal with it. There's really no excuse to be talking about umpires.
"Normally in these situations, there would be a financial sanction."
Fans have raged on Twitter that the AFL is stifling freedom of speech by banning players' comments on umpires.
But Demetriou said he didn't buy the argument.
"Freedom of speech has to come with some responsibility," Demetriou said.
"If we were all allowed to say everything we wanted to say, we'd be in a bit of strife, particularly me."
As for Richmond, AFL football operations manager Adrian Anderson said the league chose to impose the financial sanction on the Tigers, as head coach Damien Hardwick had also approached the umpires during a recent game.
The latest incident was brought to the AFL's attention after it was included in a report by the umpires.
"All match-day staff are required to adhere to a clear set of guidelines in relation to their conduct towards umpires,'' Anderson said.
"It is important that the AFL continues to take a zero tolerance approach in dealing with umpire abuse, as a negative match-day environment is still the primary factor impacting on the recruitment and retention of umpires in community football across Australia.''
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/afl/teams/injured-blues-marc-murphy-and-jeremy-laidler-say-sorry-for-twitter-outburst/story-e6frf9k6-1226396530309
