Goodes – Reputation On The Wane?

Dual Brownlow Medallist Adam Goodes has had another win tonight, this time in an off-field matter.

For the second time in as many seasons, Goodes has escaped a suspension at the AFL tribunal. But although he’s had a win – has his reputation suffered a big loss?

If you can’t remember or didn’t see last year’s incident, here’s a clip of his behind the play hit on Demon Simon Godfrey – a cheap shot that shocked much of the footy public:

This time, Goodes was charged by the match review panel for allegedly striking Port Power youngster Matt Thomas. While Thomas held him in a tackle, he appeared to thrust his elbow back and make contact with the youngster’s head. He was given a one match suspension due to a carry over of points from his prior record, but was able to beat that tonight on appeal.A number of interesting points have been highlighted from the appeal – a hearing which has brought about heated debate from a large number of footy fans nationwide – online forums such as BigFooty have been especially busy.

One of the keys to Goodes’ defence was the lack of conclusive video footage – as the camera was on the opposite side to Goodes to right arm, his torso shielded the incident from view. As ‘inconclusive’ as it has been made out to be, Goodes’ arm can be clearly seen to jolt backwards towards his opponents head, which is supported by his argument that he was trying to shrug his opponent’s tackle. However, the footage fails to show any specific contact between Goodes’ elbow and Thomas’ head.

The tribunal apparently bought Goodes’ explanation that his Port opponent was dazed by the hard SCG centre as his head hit the ground, rather than any contact he may have made as he shrugged him off. This evidence was supported by pre-match discussion regarding the rock hard centre square.

Interestingly, the inconclusive footage which has saved Goodes was not enough to save Tiger Cam Howat just a week ago when he was rubbed out for 3 matches for striking Carlton’s Adam Hartlett. The difference in the two cases revolve around the fact that Goodes was unable to be proven guilty by the footage, whereas Howat pleaded guilty and tried to have his suspension reduced using the footage as evidence. Unclear footage in both cases meant neither case could be supported by the video – hence Goodes goes free and Howat serves his full sentence.

Whether the tribunal made the right decision to acquit Goodes or not, what has evolved from the case is the increasing amount of fans who see Goodes as a ‘dirty’ player. These two incidents, as well as his repeated rough hits on James Hird last year (as seen below), have seen a number even liken his actions to Bombers backman Dustin Fletcher – himself no stranger to controversial tribunal appearances.

Whether by misjudgement or plain misfortune, it seems Goodes’ latest incident has left another minor blight on a decorated career. Only time will tell if such niggling incidents will continue to blot his glossy copybook or if his image will regain that represented by his two brownlow medals as one of the best, and fairest, players of our modern game.

Has this latest incident affected the way you see Adam Goodes? Let us know by having your say below.