Penalty appeal after 17yo’s jaw broken in on-field strike in AFL country league
A country footballer who broke a 17-year-old's jaw in an off-the-ball hit will face an AFL Victoria appeals board after his local league deemed his initial sentence too lenient.
Branxholme-Wallacedale teenage footballer Sam Lambevski suffered a fractured cheekbone and a broken jaw after he was allegedly struck by 28-year-old Heywood man Will Pickett, during a south-west Victorian football match last month.
Mr Pickett was handed a three-week penalty by an independent tribunal, and police have charged him with recklessly causing serious injury.
The appeal announcement came less than 24 hours after West Coast midfielder Andrew Gaff was handed an eight-week penalty for his off-the-ball hit on Fremantle rookie Andrew Brayshaw, the longest sanction handed out at the sport's elite level in a decade.
While both AFL clubs have accepted Gaff's penalty, the team at Branxholme-Wallacedale remain concerned by the leniency of Pickett's sentence.
Their disdain led AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan to label the sanction "inadequate", a comment that was quickly followed by an official appeal by the South West District Football Netball League.
"It's a unique set of circumstances for the league to effectively appeal its own league tribunal, but I think under the circumstances the expectation is that a three-week penalty doesn't match the actual incident itself," AFL Victoria chief executive Steven Reaper said.
"To look at that and consider that someone who has created that issue could be back playing before the player injured, it doesn't sit right with me and a lot of other people in the football fraternity.
"Without looking to influence the appeal board decision, I think an appeal certainly sets out a standard of behaviour that the league won't tolerate."
Tribunal system supported despite inconsistencies
AFL Victoria has defended the merits of its tribunal and appeal system, despite inconsistencies in some sanctions handed out across the state.
The state footballing body is currently reviewing its appeal system, with results of that appraisal expected to be announced within the next six months.
Mr Reaper said the Gaff ruling would not set a precedent for striking cases, and AFL Victoria had no intention of implementing mandatory sentencing for such cases.
"Yes, there is some inconsistency [in penalties] and it's hard to avoid, but to have a set penalty system would be quite difficult to manage," he said.
"We have more than 80 leagues in country Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne and it's difficult to provide consistency across all of those leagues.
"Each league has its own tribunal and that's why we have an appeals board sit above it, just in case people or leagues feel aggrieved with decisions that happen at that level."
Legal expert backs system
University of Melbourne sports law professor Jack Anderson believes the current tribunal system is the most appropriate to oversee country sports, despite the variance in penalties that can arise.
"You have to be careful — one or two cases shouldn't spark overall reform," Mr Anderson said.
"There are countless numbers of games that occur every weekend and most pass without incident.
"Mandatory sentences come with certain unintended consequences.
"The appeal system is there as a check and balance for decisions made by local tribunals that might be deemed too light, and maybe this is something you can bring in more at a country level."
Mr Anderson stressed the importance of Gaff's eight-week penalty and the criminal charges levelled at Mr Pickett in south-west Victoria.
"In that instance the criminal law, albeit as a last resort, it's acting as a deterrent," he said.
"Leagues have to recognise that with these offences, enough is enough. That's important when we're talking about king-hits or single-punch attacks.
"We have specific legislation on that, so why is it that when you put on a jersey we seem to take a lighter touch?
"That's not the case, and I think all of us in sport need to remember that."
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