‘Brave’ umpire who flipped prelim result a lock for grand final
The AFL umpire lauded for making the “bravest” decision in the league’s history is all-but a lock to get the nod for Saturday’s grand final.
Hayden Meyer, the ump who pinged Jarman Impey for holding the ball, handing Hugh McCluggage the goal that flipped the result in the dying seconds, likely locked himself in for the biggest stage with that decision alone.
Hayden Meyer was the umpire who made the tough call - and it was the right call. Fox Footy, Instagram
Impey had an arm free and made no attempt to get rid of the ball, hoping the umpire would call a ball-up and allow the Hawks to reset defensively as they held on for the final siren.
The call was made by Meyer, and suddenly Brisbane were in front with 18 seconds to play.
The decision has been widely praised as the correct one. Fox Footy’s Garry Lyon called it the “one of the bravest umpiring calls I’ve ever seen and it was on the money.”
Even Hawthorn legend Dermott Brereton conceded “to all the Hawthorn supports – that was a free kick”.
Brisbane veteran Dayne Zorko, who set up the play that led to the McCluggage goal, also fully backed the umpire's call.
"Every day of the week that's holding the ball. If you've got an arm free you've got to get rid of it," Zorko told SEN after the game.
Hawthorn fans were enraged by the call, pelting the umpires with bottles and litter as they left the field.
Field umpire Jacob Mollison could be seen shielding fellow umpire Nathan Williamson from the incoming debris, before pointing out those in the crowd responsible to security.
Meyer was a few steps behind them walking off the field.
The AFL is yet to release a statement on the crowd behaviour, but previous instances of fans throwing items at umpires on the field have resulted in lifetime bans from matches.
In 2024, a Carlton fan received a lifetime ban for throwing a bottle that hit a goal umpire in the head.
The AFL and umpires boss Stephen McBurney will have the difficult task in the next few days of determining the four field umpires to helm the Fremantle-Brisbane clash.
Meyer, according to one former AFL umpire who spoke to nine.com.au on the condition of anonymity, however, is a lock. The league can’t be seen to have dropped him after making such an enormous decision, particularly when the call was correct.
Umpire Jacob Mollison calls out the offender who threw a bottle at umpires leaving the field. Fox Footy
They rate the whistleblower among the best the AFL has had in recent years.
Meyer, who previously umpired as Hayden Gavine before taking his wife's surname, is widely regarded as one of the best of the current umpires.
He umpired last year's grand final and made his grand final debut in 2023.
Mollison, who stepped in to defend his fellow umpires, was named the 2025 All-Australian umpire and is also likely to be named.
The AFL will have a tough call to make for the final two spots, but Meyer certainly made their job easier by nailing the biggest call of the season to date.
St Kilda champion Leigh Montagna slammed the fans for their treatment of the umpires after the game.
"They are disappointing scenes. We don't see that in Australia. We reserve that for other countries," Montagna told Triple M.
Premiership Hawk Isaac Smith added: "It's just not on. You just don't do that."
Brisbane will be looking to win their third straight premiership on Saturday, while Fremantle has the chance to win the team’s first ever flag.
