Should Nic Naitanui cop a one-week AFL ban for this tackle?
Nic Naitanui could be headed to the tribunal after match review officer (MRO) Michael Christian handed the West Coast Eagles ruckman a one-match suspension for a tackle on Port Adelaide's Karl Amon.
The tackle came late in the third quarter of West Coast's win over Port, with Naitanui hunting down Amon before an aggressive tackle rode him into the turf. The umpire awarded Amon a free kick for a push in the back and, despite looking a little rattled, he took his kick and played the rest of the game.
But Port's medical report suggested Amon suffered a delayed concussion, leading Christian to rule the tackle as careless, medium impact and high contact, resulting in a suspension.
Eagles coach Adam Simpson said he was perplexed by the decision, and the club would consider its options.
"It's a bit of a headscratcher for me, personally," Simpson told Channel Seven.
"The vision I saw, he didn't have his arms pinned."
External Link: Poll: Should Nic Naitanui be suspended?
And Simpson was not alone in decrying the MRO's decision, with North Melbourne coach Brad Scott among those who felt that Naitanui did not do much wrong.
"It's a push in the back, I think that's the penalty," Scott told Channel Seven's Talking Footy.
"If Nic had managed to roll Karl, then everything would have been fine.
"West Coast will probably challenge that."
Naitanui also had support from some past and present players on Twitter — though some of them promptly deleted their tweets to avoid an AFL fine.
External Link: Mitch Robinson tweet: Really?External Link: Xavier Ellis tweet: Nic Nat a victim of the 2018 rule called too strong, too aggressive. Probably due a week off to rest up anyhow.External Link: Campbell Brown tweet: Can someone explain to me how the hell @NicNat has been suspended for a week, for that tackle. Absolute joke. Eagles must appeal.
ABC/AAP
[contf]
[contfnew]
ABC .net
[contfnewc]
[contfnewc]
