THROUGH the six-year premiership drought, the past four of those years without even getting a team in the grand final, Victorians have at least been able to console themselves with one thought: the umpires — as ever — are to blame.

Controversial statistics though, reveal that in the past two years, if there's any umpiring bias, it's in favour of the Victorian clubs.

The stats show that when non-Victorian clubs play Victorian clubs, home or away, the non-Vics usually win, but usually receive fewer free kicks.

That's not how it should be, says home statistician and Adelaide fan Chris Schubert, who has combed through Champion Data figures on free-kick totals since Round 15 in 2005.

"Logic dictates that if winning teams are getting to the ball first, they should be winning the most free kicks from umpires. The statistics are showing that's not the case."

Schubert's figures over 145 matches show that the non-Vics won 68 per cent of the games. Yet the non-Vics only received more free kicks in 37 per cent of the games.

"That's a clear and undeniable proof of Victorian bias," Schubert said.

To say that former Adelaide coach, and now Adelaide football broadcaster, Graham Cornes is not surprised by the statistics would be an understatement.

"From the advent of the Crows I always felt the umpire didn't pay the same free kick for an infringement by a Victorian guernsey that they paid for a non-Victorian," he says.

"Honestly, it was a huge problem to me when I was coaching, but you had to put it away and not be distracted by it. I don't believe the umpires cheat, but I believe there is a subconscious component."

Veteran Western Australian sports broadcaster George Grljusich says the pro-Vic bias goes back to the origin of the West Coast Eagles in the 1980s, and that umpiring decisions against non-Victorian teams have cost coaches their jobs. He cites Damian Drum's axing at the Fremantle Dockers in 2001 as an example.

"In a game against Carlton at Subiaco Oval, Tony Modra should've got four or five free kicks in the last quarter but the umpire wouldn't give him anything. I said on radio then that when that poor bastard Drum goes up before the board and says we lost to Carlton by less than a kick it'll be no consolation that they should've won by four or five goals."

But ABC Sport's Angela Pippos backs the officials, despite being a diehard Crows fan. "At the moment it feels like the umpies are copping a fair spray, but as someone who watches six to eight matches a round, I think they're doing a pretty good job."