Tribunal needs tuning: Schwab
Greg Denham
The Australian
June 12, 2006
FOR the second time in the 18-month history of the revamped tribunal system, the league's match review panel chairman Peter Schwab has called for an overhaul of the system.
His latest review call comes after complaints by coaches, including Brisbane's Leigh Matthews and Collingwood's Mick Malthouse, of confusion over the rules and tribunal process and after another head-high report for rough conduct on the weekend.
The tribunal system was modified between seasons, following Schwab's report last year that conduct was difficult to assess, the system was harsh on prior offenders and also harsh on behind-the-play incidents, however minor.
He also warned that jumper punches were becoming more prevalent and closer to disguised strikes and that head-high bumps - particularly when a player is hit front-on with his head over the ball - had tended to be reported and graded.
Speaking on ABC radio on the weekend, Schwab, the former Hawthorn coach who works part-time in the media as well as for the AFL, said he would welcome another tribunal summit.
Schwab said his panel, which includes former umpire Peter Carey and former Carlton player Andrew McKay, needed guidance over what was acceptable contact in head-high collisions.
"What I am saying is that at the end of the year, we would like some feedback and direction to say ... what are we going to accept and not accept in our game," he said.
"I think it would be good to get to the end of the year and I've got 10 incidents, to put them up, so we can say as an industry: 'That is fine and that can happen every Saturday night or every Friday night until the cows come home, but we are not going to cop that one'. Let's have a sit-down and chat with everyone involved, particularly the players, coaches, media, and really look at the issue and say, 'What sort of contact do we expect on the football field and what do we accept and what do we not accept'."
Schwab's panel has again come under fire for its inconsistency. Last week a legitimate hip-and-shoulder bump by Gary Ablett against West Coast's David Wirrpanda at Skilled Stadium was initially penalised by the panel before being cleared by a hearing of the tribunal jury.
No action was taken against Brisbane's Tim Notting after he made contact with the head of Collingwood's Blake Caracella on June 3, which unfortunately caused neck and spinal damage.
The panel said Notting had committed himself to bending low and was moving at a speed which he would have found hard to curb. The way the ball bounced, with Caracella's change of direction and slip, placed him in a vulnerable position. Under the circumstances, contact was unavoidable.
Then Fremantle's Des Headland threw a haymaker at Richmond's Kayne Pettifer at Subiaco in round 10 and, after receiving a three-week ban by the panel for an attempted strike, got off scot-free following a jury hearing.
The panel will be again put to the test today as it reviews an incident which saw the Kangaroos' Jade Rawlings reported for rough conduct on Saturday, after hitting Richmond's Richard Tambling high and front-on. Schwab's panel was criticised after West Coast's Beau Waters was suspended for three matches (reduced to two on an early guilty plea) for his rough conduct charge against Brisbane's Robert Copeland in round five.
The perception was that the incident was very similar to Byron Pickett's hit on Adelaide's James Begley in the pre-season of 2005. Pickett was sent straight to the tribunal and was given a six-match penalty.
Pickett's action was deemed by the panel to be intentional conduct with severe impact, whereas it judged Waters' to be reckless and high - not severe - impact.
Schwab conceded on the weekend that he may have made a mistake in assessing the Waters-Copeland incident.
He admitted that his panel may have incorrectly graded the clash. He said he was satisfied with the process which graded Waters by the available categories, but added: "I stand corrected - that if I probably had to make that judgment again, I would make a different judgment.
"I got criticised by people, saying we were trying to make a change by stealth on Ablett."
Schwab's panel charged Ablett with rough conduct, yet previous incidents involving Pickett and Daniel Giansiracusa were not cited after bumps on Ryan Crowley (fractured cheekbones) and Justin Koschitzke (fractured skull) resulted in long-term injuries.
In reviewing both incidents, the panel made no mention of whether the amount of physical force used was reasonable or necessary in the circumstances, irrespective of whether the player was or was not in possession of the ball or whether he was within five metres of the ball.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,19441303-36035,00.html
