Port Adelaide forward Sam Powell-Pepper has been handed a four-match suspension by the AFL Tribunal for the high bump that concussed Adelaide defender Mark Keane during last week’s trial match.
The Power’s bid to reduce the sanction to three matches was unsuccessful, while the league have confirmed the ban will only apply to home-and-away matches, meaning their upcoming AFL Community Series pre-season clash with Fremantle cannot be used as part of his suspension.
He will miss the club’s matches against West Coast, Richmond, Melbourne and Essendon.
In a marathon three and a half-hour Tribunal hearing despite Powell-Pepper pleading guilty to all charges, the Port defence had attempted to reduce the 26-year old’s suspension to three games.
The club and Powell-Pepper himself claimed his sole intent was to tackle Keane and that his amount of time to avoid contact with the Crow as teammate Willie Rioli’s tackle slung him into his path was grounds for a lesser penalty, with a biomechanist giving evidence to support the case.
The Power also argued the AFL was attempting to ‘make a scapegoat’ of Powell-Pepper in calling for a four-match suspension, in an ongoing attempt to eradicate concussion from the game following a series of head-knock related retirements, including Melbourne midfielder Angus Brayshaw only last week.
However, their argument that anything more than a three-match ban would be ‘manifestly excessive’ was not heeded by the Tribunal.
“It [a suspension] sends a message to the playing community about the standards expected of players… to take the utmost care in any action that might result in a collision with the head,” AFL counsel Lisa Hannon KC said while arguing for a four-match ban.
In explaining their verdict, the Tribunal stated Powell-Pepper ‘as contact was about to occur… altered the position of his right shoulder and with his right arm tucked in made heavy and high contact with Keane’.
“We do not accept that the conduct involved minimal culpability,” Tribunal chairperson Renee Enbom said after handing down the four-match verdict, according to Fox Footy.
“Powell-Pepper ran to Keane, who was in the process of being tackled. We accept he was seeking to assist with the tackle. We don’t accept Keane moved in such a way when being tackled by Rioli that Powell-Pepper could not have reasonably anticipated the movement.
Mark Keane sustained a concussion after a high hit from Sam Powell-Pepper. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images)
“Even if the shoulder movement was a reflex action, that fact does not mean that the conduct as a whole involved minimal capability.
“We consider Powell-Pepper’s conduct to have been very careless. He ran at speed towards a tackle that was occurring.
“If he didn’t anticipate that the tackled player would be moving in the tackle, he should’ve reasonably anticipated that.
“He had a duty to take reasonable care to avoid head high contact when seeking to assist in a tackle. He did not take any steps to avoid the contact that ultimately occurred.
“Even if we accept the shoulder movement was a reflex action, the reflex action occurred because he ran at speed at a player who was already being tackled.
“Powell-Pepper took no steps to avoid high contact with the player being tackled. In all of those circumstances we consider four weeks to be an appropriate sanction.”
Maxy
Roar Rookie
Yep.They should manage Dixon this year,leave him home in some road games especially when we play the lower teams on the ladder where we should be able to cover his absence.Keep the bigman fresh
BillyW
Roar Rookie
Spot on Maxy...I think I'd be happy for 12/13 from Dixon and another 10 or so into Lord....but this time we time it so Dixon is fit and firing into Sept! Backline is looking ok....all our talls need to either handball to Farrel/Houston/anybody or go long down the line!! And one of them, preferably Rat, needs to settle into a traditional FB role and prep for the big gun forwards (there's too many to list but we know who they are!)
Maxy
Roar Rookie
He is ahead of Scully in age and development so should get 1st crack at replacing Dixon,can't see Dixon playing every game lol think he played 12 this year and 13/14 the year before so not holding my breathe.Good to have the 4 talls to battle it out for spots,think that guy we drafted as a rookie from WA Xavier Walsh can play forward also,think Port are playing him down back though,height down back coming through with Kyle Marshall Tom McCollum and Walsh
BillyW
Roar Rookie
Lord will take the Dixon mantle I hope
Maxy
Roar Rookie
I foresee the return of the Raging Bull in the midfield Billy,he has had a full preseason and I agree with you we need him in there.Big Tom Scully definately looking promising,they say when he is on he is on and can kick big bags,read he kicked 37 goals in a 6 week period in the under 18's..so definately a good project player they say he could grow to 207cm so good long term replacement for Dixon perhaps,dont think we will see him this year,another year in the SANFL to bulk up a bit.Meade is highly rated down at Alberton and I think is ready to go so just needs his chance to break into the midfield,not sure what he can do up forward or wing perhaps,he is an inside midfielder though.Dante debut last year so its not Soldo and Sweet or bust..and I agree I like the looks of Dante,he can jump also,he tried to take a hanger last week,he dropped it but he got up there,lol
BillyW
Roar Rookie
Will be interesting Maxy, with Georgy back, how we line up....I think Georgi, Dixon, Rioli JHF, Marshall, DBJ Georgi in sends Finlayson to the bench (makes it easier to 2nd ruck also) DBJ because I think he is our #1 defensive forward, those running half backs are game winners now days... JHF/Butters/Rozee because they are too good to rest on the pine all the time....I haven't tried picking a side this year but I do like McEntee and Mead for that matter.... Wines has to be in the middle.....Butters and Rozee are good but when the finals roll around they just don't have the size to do it all against mature midfields Decent preseason so far Max....been impressed so far with Mead, Dante and Scully (outside of the usual suspects)
BillyW
Roar Rookie
Port didn't cry "scapegoat" at all....the lawyer threw it out there and Ken went on record as not liking it, so sick of these hyperbolic headlines
Mr Murray
Roar Rookie
What the afl seems to want players to do in these situations is leave themselves wide open and cop a Tom Lonergan-esque injury. Soon we'll have a raft of major internal injuries to players who legally arent allowed to brace themselves. The irony? The other player still gets concussed
Maxy
Roar Rookie
With Wines move back into the midfield one of Rozee Butters or JHF won't be starting in the middle,can only play 3 in there,I would start JHF up Forward to replace SPP and bring Jackson Meade to the bench and he could help with midfield rotations.Rozee and JHF could do the old style ruck rover thing and change up forward and those 2 will keep the scoreboard ticking over more so than a McEntee type who is mainly a defensive forward.Like you said McEntee still might be in the team depending on tall/small mix
Dodgy brothers
Roar Rookie
The AFL didn't even try to win that case, it was just optics. If he wasn't trying to hurt Brayshaw he would've put his hands up to soften the contact like any normal person does if they accidentally bump into someone, instead he drops the shoulder. The AFL could've argued that, instead they said he jumped with the intent to bump which was an argument that could never win.
PeteB
Roar Rookie
That’s it. It’s hard to determine exactly what SPPs intention were. But it was very clear in recent prior years that high profile incidents involving Maynard and Cripps that they knew they were going to and intended to make high contact. In my world, based on intent, SPP maybe gets 2 weeks, Cripps gets 3 and Maynard 6.
Hornet2605
Roar Rookie
"He did not take any steps to avoid the contact that ultimately occurred" The AFL tribunal is a joke! Football is a contact sport - thete will be contact - a player does not have responsibility to avoid contact. The fact that there was a tackle that caused the head high contact is clear - you cannot argue otherwise. Not surprised at all given the AFLs biased standing.
DTM
Roar Rookie
Surely, if P-P's offence deserves 4 weeks, so does Maynard's? Another argument for Vic bias claimants.
Laurie
Roar Rookie
McEntee might already be in the 22 Maxy. I hope Francis Evans gets a game or two.
Wolzal
Roar Rookie
Keane pivots his back into contact so I'd hesitate to even call Rioli's tackle a sling. But every time I watch it can't understand what SPP's intentions are. Players pull off all kinds of agile feats to avoid contact when they have the ball, but when it comes to running to a contest, its a straight line and "bracing" for contact. There's often never any attempt to mitigate contact when the shape of the contest changes. And for what its worth it does seem like SPP is pulling up when he arrives at the scene. But he never attempts to reach for the ball, or avoid contact, which says to me his intention was to lay his body into the contest, and he simply props and turns his shoulder. Honestly it just looks like a hockey player finishing his check. And this is where the coaching and mindset of players, for better or worse, has to change. There is a far greater responsibility to exercise a duty of care towards other players. Just as you can no longer throw your body into a smother, consequences be damned, you can't just run a straight line into a contest and "brace" for contact. If the game is fast and dynamic, then you can be fast and dynamic in avoiding contact. If you can sidestep to avoid a tackle, you can sidestep to avoid hitting a bloke in the head.
The Iron Dingo
Roar Rookie
Interesting indeed - we've all seen this movie before.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
There was a furnishing vinyl called Tijuana Oatmeal & another called White Castillian which looked like something the Pope would sit on. --------- Namemakers: tccht, pffft
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Absolutely.
PeteB
Roar Rookie
Harsh based on the non penalty handed out last year. This year if SPP gets 4 then a Maynard type incident should get at least 6.
Maxy
Roar Rookie
Hmmm .Start JHF forward and bring in Jackson Meade to help in midfield rotations or probably bring in Jed Mcentee,or play 2 rucks perhaps and 1 rest forward....option 1 would be the best way I think