I mostly agree freoboy49. Before the grading criteria was introduced the tribunal was wildly subjective and capricious. The grading criteria is not perfect, but at least in reined it in a little. The current system also meant that players, QC’s, biomechanics experts and AFL staff didn’t need to spend hours every week at hearings.
But often it’s still line-ball when deciding whether someone’s action was careless or deliberate, or the impact was low or medium. People on here have argued at length that Hayden Ballantyne’s actions in snotting a bloke weren’t deliberate, yet can categorically state that Trent Cotchin – the Clark Kent of football – deliberately snotted Neale while looking the other direction in a bit of push and shove. It’s still a subjective process, and always will be.
Most people say that ‘all they want is consistency’; well on that score the current MRP has been the most consistent yet. In Cotchin’s case, they couldn’t be sure Cotchin’s hit was deliberate (I reckon on the balance of probabilities it was), and they didn’t know how much it hurt Neale (there was no blood, he finished the game well, wasn’t assessed for concussion), so they gave the lowest possible grade rather than rub a bloke out for a week. That has been how the MRP has consistently approached their role this year. I quite like it.
There’s probably 20 years of data that suggests the worst injury from a jumper punch or tummy tap is a blood lip or being winded for 5 minutes, so I can see why the MRP (being made up of former players) is inclined to lean more towards a fine than a suspension as a penalty; while saving the heavier suspensions for blokes hitting players with their head over the ball, or swinging their arms wildly in marking contests.
But the non-playing public have spoken, and as shane alludes to we’ll see the AFL swing too far the other way. I dare say we’ll likely see more inconsistency, and possibly more players milking the hits in an attempt to ensure other players get suspended. Will we see fewer tummy taps and jumper punches? Maybe, but we’ve seen them pretty consistently in previous years when there was a suspension, so I guess we’ll see.
