I don’t know what games you’ve been watching, but I haven’t seen a hit like that one since the 1980s. Sure there are the jumper punches to the body, but not to the head, and I have never seen anything as blatant as Gaff’s right hook to the jaw. Not even close.
I do remember seeing a notorious Melbourne player whose name escapes me now sock Daisy Williams on the jaw and break it while they were contesting for the ball one day right in front of me at Windy Hill way back when. That’s the closest.
What Wim is saying is that the jumper punches, elbows to the yutz, the one inch punches to the solar plexus regions etc condition players into thinking striking anywhere but the head is ok.
It’s not and shouldn’t happen.
I think you’re missing my point a little.
Perhaps I haven’t explained it well.
I’m saying the acceptability of ‘little’ punches created an environment where ‘big’ punches can happen.
As to hits like Gaff since the eighties, well…I did post two of them in this thread…
Jamie Lawson’s career ended after his leg was broken in a similar fashion to G Rohan. The AFL didn’t change the rules then but it was a simpler time when litigation wasn’t seriously considered.
Which would mean it’s a week worse than Halls.
As I said before, I don’t understand why hits like these aren’t a season off (which they most likely would be in local footy - you’d be looking at deregisistration in some leagues)
Not sending blokes off was one of the big differences from Rugby League that struck me as strange when I started following AFL. It was explained to me at the time that the umps can’t really know how bad a hit is and that’s what the tribunal is for. Especially when you consider staging etc.
I agree with Wimm that the culture needs to change. Blokes hitting each other off the ball needs to stop because it’s just escalating. Not sure on the stats to be honest but there seems a to be a striking charge each week. It’s getting to the point where if you don’t throw a punch back you’re weak and they get to keep hitting you.
Looking at that Bugg hit on Mills (up thread), Mills clearly punches him in the guts first before getting decked. Served him right but I don’t know who really started it, probably been going all game and a little love tap got Mills flush when it wasn’t meant to.
Anyway, there has to be a line where an ump can send a bloke off, it’s just a matter of where that line is. What about kicking a spectator in the face, or headbutting an umpire?
I know we are all worried about it happening in a final but chances are if it happened a couple of times in H&A season blokes would learn pretty quick and umps would want to be pretty sure of it in a final.
I reckon the AFL would love the extra drama so I wouldn’t be surprised to see it implemented.
When I was at the Sydney game, I was thinking about the fact that Jones had been reported twice for thug acts on our players, yet we don’t see the benefits of a player getting reported in our game. Only the team that Sydney played next would see the benefit of a player getting suspended.
But having spent 13 years umpiring football. Jones would have been Yellow carded for the first punch on Merrett. Then Red carded for the hit on Langford.
The issue is, do we want the umpires to have more power in the game? All It takes is a self-centred and power craving flog to start waving red cards around like it’s out of fashion. I don’t trust the umpires.
So if someone spat on you ,you wouldn’t turn around and drop them?
I’m not saying that’s what happened to gaff, but it one thing that could happen. Send off rule is a dumb idea. Plain and simple
I bet He Wasn’t Expecting That. lucky he had a singing career to fall back on.
Then that rules out the Lockett/Caven incident.
Wouldn’t have thought so. Lockett’s intention was to damage Caven. It wasn’t a protective motion.
Lay off, Jamie.
Times and society have changed. Should not be allowed to continue playing a game of footy after punching an unsuspecting opponent and breaking his jaw and sending him straight to surgery. Have a match referee like cricket and remove him immediately. He’s forgone his right to continue in that game.
So you’re saying you’d be comfortable with a report and 50m penalty if say Z Jones had broken Z Merrett’s jaw/teeth, sending him to hospital + ruling him out for the rest of the game and several more games? And presumably you’d have no issue with Essendon being down a player and probably the rest of the team losing focus in order to deal with Jones? And what if there were some Sydney supporters sitting near you who thought what Jones did was ok and proceeded to goad you about it?
I realise this is getting ridiculous but we are dealing with hypotheticals… But A Brayhaw isn’t.
I understand where you are coming from. My issue is with a rule like this you need to look at every possible scenario that could occur before you bring it in
I also think it would lead to more staging and play acting by players to try and get others sent off. I see it all the time in soccer and I despise it
No doubt he wanted to nail him but I wouldn’t call it assault, the ball was in play and is quite to different to the other three you have grouped it with
Giving umpires more power to ■■■■ us over by their own discretionary interpretation of poorly written rules?
Hell no.
Yet you watch EFL and VFL footy yeah.
Odd.
FWIW, a total of 16 weeks (across all comps) now prevents you playing at any level ever again.
I’m saying there needs to be an avenue to prevent a player who without any doubt, willfully assaults another player with malice from remaining on the field. For everyone’s benefit. I believe A Simpson did the wrong thing by putting Gaff back on after striking Brayshaw. Simpson was entitled to do it but Gaff’s presence had the potential to cause all sorts of violence both on and off the field that it shouldn’t be up to a coach to make that decision.