It really is a case of Christian making it up as he goes along.
I agree that Smith was silly and don’t mind the fine (but at least get it right for what it is for).
In terms of looking for Christian to be consistent, I can’t resist a rant:
If Christian can’t look at the Hodge on Heppell contact in slow motion and see that a player has been deliberately knocked out, and don’t get me started about the Francis fine.
I think players being assaulted on the football field, and ultimately causing brain damage in some cases, sometimes ending careers prematurely (granted some this contact occurs in normal play), we can’t get too serious about it.
The point of all of the above is that a totally arbitrary approach is nowhere near good enough and does nothing to educate players where the line is.
So Parker got off with a $2000 fine for a jump in the air bump that hit a head. Christian’s idea of equal punishment isn’t working out so well, he is more all over the place than anything we have had previously.
Also this:
Meanwhile, Carlton defender Jed Lamb was hit with a $2000 fine for striking Western Bulldogs star Marcus Bontempelli in the back at a crucial stage of the game.
Bont had actually swung his elbow back and collected Lamb first yet he wasn’t fined or even cited.
I saw an umpire get in Heppell’s way at one point in the game when he was running towards the play. Didn’t look like Heppell’s fault to my eyes if that’s the incident
Now you mention it, I remember seeing an umpire getting in a lot of peoples way in a passage of play.
I thought, that’s weird.
Didn’t relate it to the report though.
Christian has gotten worse by the week this year. The one man band hasn’t worked this year and is getting the chop. But it doesn’t matter what the system is or who administers it, there’s always going to be problems.
FWIW, no issue at all with Devon copping a fine, the amount of bullshit niggling punches and strikes that goes on is utterly beyond a joke and needs to be stamped out for once and for all.
