Johnson's Sandover Medal hopes take a dive
Sandover Medal favourite Paul Johnson may not be able to win the WAFL's premier award after being reported for striking a West Perth opponent on Saturday.
Johnson's report compounded a dirty day for East Perth who became the first team to lose a Perth derby by 100 points.
The two arch rivals had met 331 times over 108 years without a century margin until West Perth won the match between last year's grand finalists 22.17 (149) to 7.7 (49) at Medibank Stadium on Saturday.
Johnson was reported by umpire Alex Martin midway through the last quarter over his late tackle on Steven Potente.
Clear footage of the incident captured by the ABC coverage of the match is expected to be assessed this morning by the WAFL report review panel.
Unless the panel decides the report is baseless and should be withdrawn, Johnson may be offered a reprimand given the strike is likely to be assessed as negligent conduct, low impact and high contact, which would rule him ineligible for the Sandover Medal.
Johnson is a proven vote- winner who was runner-up in last year's Sandover count and won the JJ Liston Medal as the best player in the VFL in 2005.
WAFL WRAP * P14-15
