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Round 21, 2017. Toby Greene is in his second game back in the Giants’ side after a second suspension in the season.
Halfway through the third quarter, and Greene leapt up to take hold of a handball, kicking Luke Dahlhaus in the face in the process.
According to Giant’s coach, Leon Cameron at the time, “Clearly he has got his eyes on the ball, so what he’s done is protected himself.”
Greene was reported for the incident, but by some miracle – or conspiracy – had the charge assessed as “misconduct” and was fined $1500.
Fast forward to the elimination final of 2018, and Greene has now made it a regular tactic to shove his boot out as “protection” when in a marking contest. Multiple times throughout the game against Sydney, when contesting a mark, Greene is seen not just to try and lift a knee in protection, but to actively put his boot into his opponent in order to keep them out of the marking contest.
The AFL rules clearly state that it is “prohibited contact” when a player “kicks or attempts to kick an opposition player, unless contact is accidentally made whilst the player is kicking the football.” It is also under the definition of specific offences that kicking another person, either intentionally or carelessly, is a Reportable Offence.
In the fourth quarter of Saturday’s elimination final, Greene was paid a mark, after holding Nic Newman out of the contest through the complete extension of his leg, the tread of Greene’s boot making active contact with Newman’s stomach. Newman rightly protested that the free kick should have been awarded to him, and yet instead, Greene was paid the mark and given a shot on goal.
The more this goes on, the more dangerous a precedent is set.
It’s consistently spoken of in AFL media about the behaviours in the senior game making its way into the junior ranks. Young players emulate what they see the stars of the game do, and it’s opening a dangerous door to see Greene kicking players and having it described as “protection.”
There are over 700 other players in the AFL list who are able to protect themselves in a marking contest without sticking their boot into another player’s gut – or face, as in the case of the Greene/Dahlhaus incident.
Left unchecked, it’s only a matter of time before Greene kicks another person in the face. The AFL cannot let this continue without calling Greene to account.
Greene must be suspended for his kick to Grundy’s stomach in the elimination final, and then informed that if he continues to kick players in contests, a free kick will be paid every time.
Greene was lauded last year as being a player who is “on the edge.” This isn’t an excuse. Violence has no part in the Australian Football League, and if the AFL is serious about stamping out these sorts of behaviours, then Greene must be held to account. “On the edge,” is no excuse for breaching the rules and endangering other players.
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