Whistleblower - finishing with a bang
Carlton and St Kilda finished the season with a bang yesterday and players are certain to face fines and possibly suspension for their part in those fights.
But the big issues today will be around Paul Chapman and Heath Grundy. Chapman has been reported and Grundy is likely to get cited.
How the match review panel assesses their incidents will play a big part in what happens on the field in finals.
REPORTS
Paul Chapman ( Geelong) for striking Ben McGlynn (Sydney)
Chapman’s record: Nil
Chapman’s raised arm made contact with McGlynn’s face after the Swan had handpassed the ball clear. But it appeared more like a push than a strike. Chapman’s first point of contact was McGlynn’s shoulder and then it slipped high. The Cat should be cleared to play against Fremantle on Saturday night.
Campbell Brown (Gold Coast) for making forceful front on contact to Aiden Riley (Adelaide)
Brown’s record: More than five games suspended in the last three years. Penalty will be increased by 50 per cent.
Brown ran at Riley as the young Crow had his head down over the ball and was lucky his bump only made contact with the top of the shoulder. It was a reckless action under the front on bumping laws, with high contact and most likely low impact. The level two offence attracts 250 points. But with Brown’s poor record, that would be increased to 375 points. An early guilty plea would then reduce the suspension to two weeks.
Dayne Zorko (Brisbane) for striking Clay Smith (Western Bulldogs)
Zorko's record: Nil
The vision of this incident wasn't great. It didn't show a clear strike, but it was from a bad angle. The MRP will need to source more vision before making a decision.
Stephen Milne (St Kilda) and Andrew Walker (Carlton) for wrestling.
Players can only be fined for wrestling. They won't be suspended, reprimanded or receive demerit points.
INCIDENTS LIKELY TO BE ASSESSED
Stephen Milne (St Kilda) for striking and/or attempting to strike Andrew Walker (Carlton)
Milne’s record: 70.31 demerit points left on his record.
This will be interesting. The fight between Milne and Walker captured everyone’s attention at the start of the game and now the MRP has to decide whether to take it further. Walker wasn’t hurt so if they decide Milne’s punches were hard enough to lay a report, the charge would be intentional conduct, low impact and high contact. Like Podsiadly, that adds up to 225 points. Throw in the 70.31 points from the final round of last season and Milne could plead guilty and accept a two week ban. But Milne could also be charged with attempting to strike. That automatically attracts 80 points which could be reduced to 60 points and a reprimand with an early plea. If the MRP feels he’s guilty of both incidents, the points would be added together but it wouldn’t increase the ban.
Chris Yarran (Carlton) for striking Brendon Goddard (St Kilda)
Yarran’s little punch to Goddard’s chin was foolish, but he barely connected. The MRP will almost certainly say it wasn’t hard enough to warrant a report.
Leigh Montagna (St Kilda) for engaging in rough conduct towards Andrew Walker (Carlton)
Montagna’s record: One match suspended in the last three years, increasing his penalty by 10 per cent.
Montagna charged into Walker as the Blue wrestled with Stephen Milne just before three quarter time. It left Walker lying on the ground winded as other players scuffled around him. It could be argued that Montagna acted recklessly by attacking Walker, he made contact to the body and it’s either low or medium impact. A low impact report would result in him being offered a reprimand. Medium impact would increase the penalty to one game.