WHEN Matt Rowell got tackled by Andy McGrath in the fourth quarter of Saturday's win over Essendon and was pinged for holding the ball, something went off inside Damien Hardwick.

Minutes later the same happened to Bailey Humphrey.

That was it. Hardwick decided he was going to let loose in his post-match press conference, calling the interpretation of the rule a "chook lotto".

Although some might see it as just another rant from a frustrated coach, there might be some method to the Hardwick madness.

"I sit there and don't know half the time what's going to happen," he bemoaned.

Hardwick went on to vent how he couldn't understand why umpires couldn't blow the whistle for a secondary stoppage when the ball-winner had his arm pinned and, in his eyes, risked being dump tackled if he tried to dispose of it.

"At least be consistent in your interpretation throughout the whole game," he said.

"Unless there's been a rule change, let me know.

"I don't want to get angry. It's Saturday, I want to go home and have a beer and relax on the couch. But let's just fix it. The inconsistency is going to drive us insane."

Dig a little deeper and we can begin to understand why the three-time premiership coach is frustrated.

He's seen Rowell get pinged far too often for his liking. 

In fact, statistics provided by Champion Data show that no player in the AFL has been whistled for holding the ball in the past five seasons more than Rowell.

He has infringed 32 per cent more often than the next most, North Melbourne's Luke Davies-Uniacke. 

Not only has the Brownlow medallist conceded the most since 2022, but he has been in the top three in each season. And in 2026, he's played three fewer matches than his opponents.

That's not to say the free kicks aren't there. Rowell lives around congestion and loves to fight off tacklers, which always brings an element of risk that he will get pinged.

But when Hardwick has seen his prime mover whistled more than anyone else in the competition, often unfairly in his eyes, it's easy to see why he'd blow his top.

You be the judge; next time you watch Rowell and he's pinged for holding the ball, you decide whether Hardwick's frustration has some merit.

Rowell's whistle count