Garry Lyon says West Coast onballer Luke Shuey deserves a suspension for his bump on Geelong star Patrick Dangerfield which is expected to attract scrutiny from the Match Review Panel (MRP).
Speaking about the first quarter incident, the former Melbourne captain believes there will be an outcry if the AFL take no action, declaring the AFL hate when players standing passively are picked off.
“You can’t get bowled up like he (Dangerfield) did. Luke Shuey ran past someone and bowled him over,” Lyon said on SEN Breakfast.
“This is why it’s such a contentious issue. I think he’ll go because the AFL hate the fact that the player was standing passively, not in the action, not in the act of getting the footy or tackling and getting cleaned up, as Shuey ran past the ball and there was enough head high (contact) for me.
“I’m not trying to be funny or sensationalist, there will be an outcry if the AFL deem it appropriate and fair that someone can run past the action and bowl over and clean up another player.
“If the AFL want to read the tea leaves on this then take no action on this play, (and) then all hell will break loose.”
Tim Watson took a differing view, believing the bump was of insufficient force to warrant a ban.
“I’ve had a very close look at the Shuey one and I’ve broken it down. I’ve had a look at the angles that were shown last night – I think its insufficient force,” he said.
“I don’t think he will receive a penalty, other than perhaps either a reprimand or a fine.
“When you hit somebody’s chest, or when you hit somebody down the front the first thing that happens is your head goes back, which makes it look like there’s head-high contact.”
SEN news breaker Sam McClure said the medical report will be key in determining whether the force is deemed intentional or careless.
“My understanding is that the medical report will be vital here in delineating exactly what the force was,” he said.
“It’s either intentional, low impact and high contact, or it’s careless and it would have to be medium impact for him to get a week.”