Former Melbourne captain Garry Lyon has pondered whether the AFL warned the West Coast Eagles about Nic Naitanui’s tackling technique prior to suspending him in last Saturday’s win over Port Adelaide.
Naitanui has been rubbed out for one week after laying an aggressive tackle on Karl Amon, one that Match Review Officer Michael Christian graded as rough conduct. The incident was assessed as careless, medium impact and high contact.
Numerous past players have been taken aback by the decision to suspend Naitanui for what many considered a fair tackle. Lyon hopes the league informed the Eagles they’re monitoring the ruckman’s tackling mechanics, and would be disappointed if they didn’t
“My question would be, did the AFL go to West Coast at any stage and say listen, we have seen Nic Nat lay two or three of these tackles,” he told SEN Breakfast.
“We don’t like it, we don’t want to just suspend him out of turn, but we want you to be aware of the fact that this is what we deem to be dangerous and he is going to have to change the way he tackles.
“If they had done that, and then Nic Nat went and laid that tackle, I can accept it.
“If they just out of the blue, very first time, said that’s unacceptable, then I have an issue with it.”
West Coast has until 11am this morning to determine whether or not they want to appeal Naitanui’s suspension at the tribunal.