The Daily Telegraph reports that big bad Barry Hall is paying the price for his awesome physical presence and the only way he'll get free kicks going his way is to take acting classes, at least that's according to former Swans star Gerard Healy.

So concerned about the number of line-ball decisions going against the Swans' hardman, coach Paul Roos has sent a video to AFL director of coaching Jeff Gieschen and umpires coach Rowan Sawers, isolating a number incidents in which Hall has been given a raw deal.

"I reckon Barry gets a raw deal from the umpires," said Healy. "The only way Barry will get a free is to fake it and fall over when he's getting mauled."

"But he's not that type of guy. His strength works against him and there is no reward when he falls over. I don't think he gets the rewards for playing in front of his opponent."

So strong and powerful is the 1.94m, 94kg Hall that legendary boxing trainer Johnny Lewis believes he has the ability to become a heavyweight champion.

And the Sydney Morning Herald reports that former Swans coach Rodney Eade also believes that Hall, like his predecessor Tony Lockett, receives little protection from AFL umpires on account of his renowned on-field aggression. Eade said that the lack of free kicks awarded to the forward could be attributed directly to his reputation for rugged play.

"I remember playing with Leigh Matthews and he never got much protection because he was an aggressive player," Eade said. "I think you can say the same thing about Tony and Barry Hall."

"When I was at the club, Tony used to get a rough deal because of his aggression, particularly close to the goal square. I thought Barry was a victim of the same thing a bit last year."

"Most forwards do get scragged and scruffed, and it's a matter of which ones get protected," Eade said. "Good players can still beat it but if the free kick is there, it's got to be paid. Having said that, though, Paul is spreading the goal-kicking duties around well this season."

Roos knows the Hall issue is a delicate one and last night did not want to dramatise his video appeal to the league.

"The way the AFL is structured it's hard for coaches to commentate on umpires," a cautious Roos said. "There is nothing untoward in these incidents, nothing involving 'behind the play'. They are just normal things which happen in the course of a game."

"I look forward to getting some clarification. There are a number of incidents on the tape and just some things we have picked up on."

Hall is certainly not about to go public and appear to be whingeing, with the Swans declaring him off limits.

"Barry is out of bounds to the media," spokesman Stephen Brassel said. "He is just getting on with doing his job and doesn't want to talk about it. The issue has been raised and Roosy is going through the right channels."

The AFL's general manager of football operations, Andrew Demetriou, said his organisation would never accept there was any bias against any particular player.

"The AFL has received the tape from Sydney and clubs are always welcome to raise issues with the umpiring department," he said. "I'm happy to discuss the matter with the Swans."

Umpires have awarded Hall just five free kicks through the opening eight rounds of the season, ruling against him on 10 occasions.

More at -

http://foxsports.news.com.au/story/0...-23211,00.html

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/...196532531.html