Brisbane star Charlie Cameron’s controversial three-match ban was sensationally upheld by the AFL Tribunal, despite widespread outrage over the suspension.
Eagles co-captain Liam Duggan suffered a concussion after his head hit the ground during a tackle early in the second quarter of the Lions’ 13-point win at Optus Stadium on Sunday.
Duggan is recovering from a concussion and will miss his club’s clash with St Kilda on Saturday; his expected return date has not yet been confirmed.
The referee accused Cameron of rough conduct, which was considered careless, violent and involved frequent physical contact. This resulted in a three-game suspension.
The Lions plead not guilty to the charge of rough conduct, arguing that Cameron’s conduct was not unreasonable under the circumstances.
In his testimony, Cameron argued that he was thrown off balance because Duggan resisted the challenge, thereby contributing to the outcome.
“He’s twisting and turning his body, so he’s pulling me down as our feet get tangled and I lose my balance,” Cameron said.
“You can see him drop his knees and twist… I have no control, I only have control over him. He’s pulling me to the ground. I felt like he created the backswing.”
The AFL, represented by Lisa Hannon, responded that the Lions star “could have tried to pull him (Duggan) down or sit him down”. She also suggested Cameron could have let go of Duggan’s right arm.
Cameron replied: “I’m just trying to complete a tackle and not allow him to lose the ball. That’s my job, to complete a tackle.”
The court deliberated for just under an hour before deciding to uphold the ban. Cameron will miss the Lions’ next three games against Sydney, Gold Coast and St Kilda.
West Coast star Elliot Yeo expressed his astonishment at the suspension when questioned on Tuesday morning, asking: “What is he supposed to do, put a pillow under his head?”
“As players we just thought, ‘It’s just a normal tackle,’” Yeo told 96FM.
“There’s no bad intention, nothing at all. It’s just a bit of bad luck.”
“It seemed to me that there were a few of them over the weekend as well, probably going in the same direction.”
Yeo said the players were confused by the decision and argued that Cameron’s tackle appeared to be “a genuine football action”.
“If you do it half-heartedly and leave them out of the fight, you feel like you’re being labelled weak and are being subjected to scrutiny,” he said.
“The line is very, very thin at the moment and it is very difficult for a player to recognise what justifies a good tackle and what does not.
“It seems to be more of a results-based thing than… to me it felt like a real football action.
“He didn’t hit his head on the ground, he didn’t do anything.
“Unfortunately he just fell because Duggy tried to shake off the tackle… what is he supposed to do, let him out of the tackle?”
West Coast midfielder Tim Kelly echoed his teammate’s sentiments, saying he did not believe there was any malicious intent behind the tackle.
“It just looked like a pretty bad accident,” Kelly told SEN.
Brisbane midfielder Josh Dunkley admitted that players would now be concerned about the outcome of the tackles, as Cameron’s “perfect tackle” had resulted in a suspension.
“He (Cameron) was a little unsettled by it straight away, but I and the referee all said at the time that it was a perfect tackle,” Dunkley said on Tuesday.
“So that’s a very harsh punishment, but I mean, what are you supposed to do? It’s hard for a player to know these days. Personally, I now go into tackles worrying about what the outcome will be.
“So you’re very hesitant about what you’re doing and I feel like that’s going to affect everyone in the competition because guys might hold back a little bit and I don’t know if we want that.”