Match Review Panel Findings for Round 18 – Big Penalties for Browne, Milburn (Footage)

Fair to say the findings from the Match Review Panel for Round 18 will be hotly debated over the next couple of days. Let’s take a look at them.

Steven Browne, Carlton, has been charged with a Level Four engaging in rough conduct offence against Jason Porplyzia, Adelaide, during the second quarter of the Round 18 match between Carlton and Adelaide, played at AAMI Stadium on Saturday August 2, 2008.
In summary, he can accept a three-game sanction with an early plea.

The incident was assessed as negligent conduct (one point), severe impact (four points) and high contact (two points). This is a total of seven activation points, resulting in a classification of a Level Four offence, drawing 425 demerit points and a four-match sanction. He has no existing good or bad record. An early plea reduces the penalty by 25 per cent to 318.75 points and a three-match sanction.

It has been reported that Jason Porplyzia looks set to be out for a month with bruising on the brain, and he took no further part in proceedings following the incident on Sunday. Carlton look set to challenge the suspension, and I would expect them to be a huge chance to get it overturned. The bump moments earlier by Thornton put Porplyzia off balance, and Browne already appeared to be in the motion of preparing to bump Porplyzia.

I think a key precedent for this case would be the Adam Goodes – Matt Thomas incident earlier in the year – a similar situation that was not conclusively caught on camera – as Browne’s wasn’t. Browne’s back was to the camera and the contact made to Porplyzia cannot be clearly seen on the footage.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Carlton get this one overturned.

The second major talking point is Darren Milburn’s tackle on Shane Edwards, where the Tiger had his arms pinned and driven head first into the turf, unable to protect himself. Take a look at the footage below:

Darren Milburn, Geelong, has been charged with a Level Four engaging in rough conduct offence against Shane Edwards, Richmond, during the third quarter of the Round 18 match between Geelong and Richmond, played at Telstra Dome on Saturday August 2, 2008.

In summary, his previous good record means that his sanction can be reduced from four games to two games, with an early plea.

The incident was assessed as reckless conduct (two points), high impact (three points) and high contact (two points). This is a total of seven activation points, resulting in a classification of a Level Four offence, drawing 425 demerit points and a four-match sanction. He has an existing five-year good record, which reduces the penalty by 25 per cent to 318.75 points and a three-match sanction. An early plea reduces the penalty by 25 per cent to 239.06 points and a two-match sanction.

Milburn’s tackle was very similar to that of Jacob Surjan’s on Robert Harvey, which resulted in Harvey leaving the field in a very groggy state. The Match Review Panel found Surjan had no case to answer, citing:

Contact between Port Adelaide’s Jacob Surjan and St Kilda’s Robert Harvery from the third quarter of Sunday’s match was assessed. Surjan tackled Harvey when the St Kilda player was in possession of the ball. Surjan pulls Harvey around in the tackle and Harvey kicks the ball just before going to ground. Given there was one action in the tackle and that Harvey had possession of the ball for most of the tackle, it was deemed a legal tackle and not a reportable offence. No further action was taken.

A very similar tackle occurred early in the year when Port’s Matt Thomas drove Crow Nathan Bassett headfirst into the turf, yet he was also able to escape without penalty. The key point appears to be that Milburn held the tackle for longer than the other two incidents. Whether that is worth such a harsh penalty – that is another story altogether. Personally I wouldn’t have thought so, and for a couple of seconds to be worth missing a whole month worth of football – it seems a really harsh decision.

The final suspension was that of Jeff Farmer…

Jeff Farmer, Fremantle, has been charged with a Level Two striking offence against Mark Nicoski, West Coast, during the third quarter of the Round 18 match between Fremantle and West Coast, played at Subiaco on Sunday August 3, 2008.

In summary, his previous poor record means that his one-game sanction cannot be reduced, even with an early plea.

The incident was assessed as reckless conduct (two points), low impact (one point) and high contact (two points). This is a total of five activation points, resulting in a classification of a Level Two offence, drawing 125 demerit points and a one-match sanction. He has an existing bad record of eight matches suspended within the last three years, increasing the penalty by 50 per cent to 187.50 points and a one-match sanction. An early plea reduces the penalty by 25 per cent to 140.63 points and a one-match sanction.

Questions have been raised why Farmer gets pinged for this incident, yet Cam Mooney got off a very similar incident only a couple of weeks ago against Rhys Palmer. With good reason – I couldn’t pick the difference between them either.

Got any thoughts on the findings? Let us know and leave a comment!