Adelaide forward Shane McAdam has been sent straight to the tribunal for his bump on Giant Jacob Wehr.
McAdam ran past the football in Adelaide’s 90-106 loss to GWS in the third term to collect Wehr with a hit that sent shockwaves through Giants Stadium.
Match Review Officer Michael Christian graded the incident as careless conduct, severe impact and high contact, sending McAdam straight to the tribunal on a rough conduct charge.
Wehr came from the ground in the aftermath but did pass a concussion test and played out the game.
McAdam finished with a goal from seven touches.
On Sunday Christian suspended Sydney’s Lance Franklin and Melbourne’s Kysaiah Pickett for one and two games respectively for similar incidents.
Pickett’s especially was of an almost identical nature to McAdam’s bump. Both players left the ground with no eyes for the football to charge into their respective performances.
Given both Wehr and Bailey Smith – who was collected by Pickett – were fit to play out the game, Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy, SEN’s Sam Edmund and four-time premiership player Luke Hodge were mildly confused by the grading.
The trio discussed the finding on *SEN’s Sportsday.
Healy: “It’s got me confused. Maybe it’s because the person who got hit had a harder head (or something else)… it’s confused me.”
Edmund: “Both players were able to play out the game. I don’t understand why one would be deemed severe and the other would be deemed high impact.”
Healy: “He possibly came at him slightly faster, but ultimately I think it’s a nonsense. I think they’re each to the same.”
Edmund: “One got two and one’s going to get three plus.”
Hodge: “The actions looked very similar.”
Pickett’s especially was of an almost identical nature to McAdam’s bump. Both players left the ground with no eyes for the football to charge into their respective performances.
Given both Wehr and Bailey Smith – who was collected by Pickett – were fit to play out the game, Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy, SEN’s Sam Edmund and four-time premiership player Luke Hodge were mildly confused by the grading.
The trio discussed the finding on *SEN’s Sportsday.
Healy: “It’s got me confused. Maybe it’s because the person who got hit had a harder head (or something else)… it’s confused me.”
Edmund: “Both players were able to play out the game. I don’t understand why one would be deemed severe and the other would be deemed high impact.”
Healy: “He possibly came at him slightly faster, but ultimately I think it’s a nonsense. I think they’re each to the same.”
Edmund: “One got two and one’s going to get three plus.”
Hodge: “The actions looked very similar.”
Hodge even went so far as to question if Pickett’s hit may be worse than McAdam’s.
“I think if you look at it, both of them have left the ground and put on a bump,” Hodge said.
“I’m actually looking at it going, ‘is the Kozzie Pickett one more dangerous’? Because Bailey Smith’s kicking the ball, he’s not bracing for a bump, he’s just kicked the ball and then been hit where Wehr… he’s actually got the ball and should be ready for contact.
“This is nothing against the players… Bailey Smith’s lucky he didn’t come out worse than what he did because he wasn’t expecting it, where Wehr was bracing for contact.”