the prevailing confusion of the game, it would be reasonable for the AFL to waive the fine in favour of a simple "please explain". Ultimately, because the commission changed the result of the game, it meant that the game was retrospectively declared over when Connolly entered the arena; as such, Connolly was no longer guilty of any infraction, and therefore the AFL had no grounds to issue any fine. Scorecard End of season Although the match was played quite early in the season, the end result proved important when determining the ladder placings at the conclusion of the home-and-away season. Fremantle finished with a record of 15–7 in third place, and St Kilda finished with a record of 14–8 in sixth place, with and finishing fourth and fifth with a 14–8 record. Had the draw stood (and all other results throughout the season remain unaffected), Fremantle and St Kilda would have been level on 14–7–1; St Kilda's superior percentage would have seen them finish third, with Fremantle fourth, Sydney fifth, and Collingwood sixth. This would have affected all four games in the first week of the finals and given St Kilda a double chance at the expense of Sydney (who would go on to make the Grand Final). Early in the season, there was ongoing speculation that, if the talented Fremantle lineup failed to reach the finals, it might cost Fremantle coach Chris Connolly his job at the club. Before the result was officially overturned, it was thought that the two points potentially lost by the siren mistake could be the difference between making or missing the finals. Ironically, however, it was St Kilda coach Grant Thomas who was dismissed at the end of the season after (though not necessarily because) the club was defeated by Melbourne and eliminated in the first week of the finals, which would certainly not have happened if St Kilda had finished third and claimed a double chance. Similar incidents There have been several occasions in Australian rules history of winning or decisive scores being kicked after the siren or bell had sounded, but failed to be heard, with a variety of outcomes to protests. These were much more common prior to the introduction of sirens, with the timekeepers' bells which were previously used much more likely to be unheard by the umpires. Protests of this nature were considerably more likely to be upheld prior