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Umps, divers & Greene cop the wrath of Twitter for AFL Round 18

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AFL Twitter chat for Australia
PATRICK Dangerfield may have stolen the pre-match headlines with lingering doubts over his fitness, but over in Adelaide it was all about Alex Keath in the lead-up to Friday night footy.

With his debut against Geelong, the mature-aged Crows recruit joined a select crop of Australian athletes who have played both top-tier football and first-class cricket.

He is the first AFL player to achieve that feat in the 21st century.

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Adelaide extended their lead atop the ladder with a comfortable win, but you would not have known it from the way the locals reacted after the final siren.

The quality of the umpiring was torn apart from all angles.

Saturday started slowly for Essendon, who looked in serious danger of losing to an undermanned North Melbourne side.

Despite missing Todd Goldstein, Jack Ziebell, or Robbie Tarrant, the Kangaroos had the better of a scrappy first half.

According to Bombers fans, however, it was the umpires who really stole the show.

Across the CBD, it was Melbourne who jumped out of the gates in style.

It was a pity that so few of the Dees faithful were around to see the 23-point win over Port Adelaide.

Jack Watts had a ball in his 150th game, but it was another of that first name who warmed Melbourne hearts on a chilly day at the ‘G.

Among a stack of big ins was former captain Jack Trengove, who had not played an AFL game since June 2016.

There was something strange going on up in Cairns, and we are not talking about the inherent absurdity of the Western Bulldogs playing a home game in northern Queensland.

Coming into this weekend, Liam Picken had never kicked more than three goals in an AFL match.

It took him a quarter and a half to best that tally on Saturday afternoon.

But it did not stop there.

The spirited Bulldog finished with six goals in a morale-boosting victory of 54 points over the Gold Coast.

The news was not all good for the reigning premiers, however.

Long-serving Dogs defender Dale Morris added another freak injury to his CV when he broke his forearm in a nasty fall from a mark contest.

The Twittersphere had plenty of sympathy for a player who is universally admired in the football community.

The Sydney Cricket Ground was awash with colour as St Kilda came to visit for the second AFL Pride Game.

The concept has proved a big hit with fans.

But it was a tough night for the Saints, whose finals hopes took another big hit as they went down by 42 points.

They barely managed to keep pace with Sydney’s star forward – and no, it was not Buddy Franklin.

Fremantle hosted Hawthorn on Saturday night in a clash between two teams who are already looking ahead to 2018.

In good news for the Dockers, Nat Fyfe showed on once more that his very best is not far away.

But it was another, far less experienced player who caught Twitter’s attention as the Hawks ran out 52-point winners.

A superb performance on debut has Hawthorn fans purring over Irish teenager Conor Glass.

Sunday was a story of big winners and even bigger losers.

On the sunny side of the ledger were Richmond, who vaulted into the top four with a gutsy win over Greater Western Sydney.

The Giants are now winless in four games, and the petulant indiscretions of a certain Toby Greene did not help their cause against the Tigers.

West Coast’s finals chances are hanging by a thread after their disastrous final quarter against Collingwood.

Having trailed by 24 points, the Pies booted five unanswered goals to snatch the unlikeliest of victories at the Docklands.

As bad a loss as that was for the Eagles, it was even worse for online bookmakers – especially those, like Sportsbet.com.au, who paid out on the result early.

Spare a thought for Carlton supporters.

So optimistic six weeks ago, the Blues have played themselves into a battle for the wooden spoon with five losses on the bounce.

This week it was the last-placed Brisbane Lions who did the deed, holding off their fast-finishing guests after a brilliant opening half at the Gabba.

Blues fans on social media seemed less concerned with the result and more with the antics of Brisbane midfielder Rhys Mathieson.

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