AFL news 2022: Tom Hawkins ruck free kick in Geelong Cats vs Melbourne Demons, Jason Dunstall left confused

A touchy free kick paid against Geelong star Tom Hawkins left Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall puzzled, saying he could understand why fans would be “confused watching ruck battles”.

Hawkins in the second term of Friday night’s clash at GMHBA Stadium was penalised for a block during a forward-50 ruck contest between him and Demons skipper Max Gawn.

The Cats veteran was left stunned by the decision — and Dunstall could empathise with him.

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“I get confused with some of these decisions, I really do,” Dunstall told Fox Footy at half-time.

“We’d just seen one go the other way, but how that is a shepherd against Tom Hawkins is beyond me.

“I love the look on Tom Hawkins’ face. He’s fighting for body position and he gets out-muscled. The only outcome of that is ‘play on’ – because Gawn was too strong – or a free kick to Hawkins for being grabbed and thrown out of the way. But you can’t possibly call that (against Hawkins).

“Look at his face. He’s going: ‘Are you serious?’

“You can understand why people get confused watching these ruck battles. That’s an extraordinary decision.”

To make matters worse for Hawkins, a Geelong teammate didn’t return the ball directly to Gawn after the free kick had been paid, meaning the Cats copped a 50m penalty.