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GWS match-winner Toby Greene’s AFL finals fate hangs in the balance after he was sent directly to the tribunal for brushing shoulders with umpire Matt Stevic amid an on-field debate.
The incident occurred at three-quarter time of the Giants’ thrilling one-point win over Sydney on Saturday, which propelled Leon Cameron’s men into a semi-final meeting with Geelong this Friday night.
Greene is in doubt for the sudden-death showdown and may not be available again until next season, with match review officer Michael Christian charging him on Sunday with “intentional umpire contact”.
AFL rules state “contact with an umpire that is aggressive, forceful, demonstrative or disrespectful will be deemed intentional and the player will be directly referred to the tribunal”.
The level of force is irrelevant.
Greene’s fate at the tribunal will in part hinge on evidence provided by experienced whistleblower Stevic around the nature of his interaction with the Giants star.
Fresh camera angles of the incident came to light on Sunday, ending the debate over whether Greene made contact with Stevic.
GWS forward Harry Himmelberg is one of a string of players who have come to Greene’s defence, along with Collingwood leaders Scott Pendlebury and Taylor Adams.
“I’m not sure there was too much in it to be honest,” Himmelberg told AFL Nation on Sunday.
“There’s always going to be a talking point when Toby is involved. We’ll just let it run its course.
“He’s one of those guys you love or you hate, and as a footy club we love him.
“He does play on the edge, but that’s what we love about him.”
Greene has a long tribunal record that includes a $1950 fine eight years ago for reckless umpire contact.
He completed a one-match ban late this season for a high elbow to Geelong star Patrick Dangerfield’s throat, having failed to have the striking charge thrown out on appeal.
Greene also missed the Giants’ preliminary final win over Collingwood two years ago for making contact with Brisbane star Lachie Neale’s eye region.
GWS could also be without Tom Green (arm), Sam Reid (hamstring) and Isaac Cumming (ankle) against Geelong.
The incident split the AFL community.
Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury wrote on Twitter that there was an “incoming Toby tax”. He claimed Greene’s contact with Stevic wasn’t as aggressive as Lion Lachie Neale’s run-in with an umpire in April, which saw him slapped with a a $1500 fine.
Incoming Toby tax…. Neale got fine didn’t he? Shouldn’t touch the umpires but that contact wasn’t more agressive than Neales for mine #justmyview
— Scott Pendlebury (@SP_10) August 28, 2021
Former Magpie Dane Swan was equally strong in his belief that Greene should escape punishment.
Incoming Toby tax…. Neale got fine didn’t he? Shouldn’t touch the umpires but that contact wasn’t more agressive than Neales for mine #justmyview
— Scott Pendlebury (@SP_10) August 28, 2021
But speaking on Fox Footy’s First Crack, Bulldogs legend Brad Johnson said Greene should be out for “probably three or four weeks as a minimum”.
“Don’t touch the umpires. Full stop!” Johnson said.
“Seriously, I’ve known for 45 years, you do not touch the umpires. Regardless of how frustrated you are, how angry you are, a decision doesn’t go your way, whatever it is you don’t touch them. End of story.
“He could’ve had a verbal and copped a fine, and no one worries about it. You don’t abuse the umpire, he did it anyway, we move on. But he touched the umpire; you just don’t go there.”
Nick Dal Santo agreed that a long punishment was appropriate.
“This is what I really get annoyed about; this is not about setting an example and a precedent for the lower levels,” Dal Santo told First Crack.
“You know you can’t do it. Those people that touch the umpire are doing it anyway, whether Toby Greene gets 10 (weeks) or gets a fine.
“We already know the rules, you’ve learned it since you’re five years old, you do not do that to an umpire.”
Fox Footy’s Nick Riewoldt said the umpires perspective on the incident could be the deciding factor in Greene’s fate.
“Is it a shoulder bump? Is it a hand brush? It’s hard to hang him on that piece of vision, (but) I know it looks bad,” Riewoldt said.
“I think they’ll need another angle, and I think Matt Stevic will play a massive role in this.
“If you actually follow it through and see the context of the conversation and how it unfolds; they’re having a pretty amicable chat. Matt Stevic doesn’t look to be too disturbed afterwards.”
Commentator David King said Greene was in “a lot of trouble”.
“I don’t think there is any way of talking around this. The umpires are a no-go zone and when you decide to walk into their path … I think he made a calculated decision, he’s made a big error,” King said.
“Unfortunately, I think he’ll miss several weeks – that’s just how it sits for me. I’m not sure how you argue your way around that one.
“He knows he’s there, he walks into him, you just can’t do that. We all love him and we all want him to play, but whenever these things happen, more often than not, it’s got Toby involved.
“I feel for the Giants. Coming down from the euphoria of this win will be the reality that Toby’s made a blue.”
Richmond forward Jack Riewoldt added: “He’s really got no one else to blame bar himself.
“He’s an emotional player and we love that about him, because it actually makes him the star he is, and why he stars in games, but this is going to be scrutinised within an inch of its life and it doesn’t look great early on.
“It’s something that’s ingrained in children, in not only the AFL, but all sports across the world, that umpires are sacrosanct.”
© AAP
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