Double jeopardy: The Balta conundrum facing RichmondBy SEN
8 April 2025No VFL fixture for Richmond this weekend has put a spanner in the works when it comes to whether Noah Balta makes his return to footy as he awaits sentencing for an alleged assault in NSW.
The 25-year-old is facing up to five years in jail after pleading guilty for an attack on another man outside the Mulwala Water Ski club in December last year, but is not set to be sentenced until April 22.
It means Balta is eligible for selection in Gather Round where the Tigers face Fremantle as well as their Round 6 clash with Gold Coast.
Having initially been handed a six-week ban by his club – which meant he missed pre-season matches and the first four rounds of the season – many called for an extension to his suspension after CCTV of the assault was made public last month.
Vision played in court showed Balta run towards his victim, knock him to the ground before delivering repeated blows to his head.
In March, prosecutors telling a court that the victim of the assault - Thomas Washbrook - was lucky to be alive.
While both Richmond and the AFL have spoken in defence of Balta and insisted there would be no further sanctions pending his sentencing, it seems there remains a question mark over his head going into Gather Round.
“This is where is sits, he is availablefor selection,” Channel 9’s Tom Morris told SEN Breakfast.
“Had there been VFL this week he would have played VFL, that was the plan.
“It was intended that he would play VFL this week but there is none. He was never intended to play AFL in his comeback game but there is no VFL match so Richmond’s match committee will decide this week if he trains or if he plays seniors.
“The Club’s view is that extending his suspension would be double jeopardy, he’s already been punished once, they don’t want to punish him again. It does sit uncomfortably with a lot of people.
“My sense is that he is less likely than more likely to play, we won’t know for sure until tomorrow. They have a big decision to make but as it stands, he is available for selection.”
Richmond coach Adem Yze last week insisted his player had been punished enough.
“The AFL was part of the process when we sanctioned him; six weeks is a long time for a player to have out,” Yze said.
“Not only the six weeks suspension, he’s been dealing with this for three months. He’s been doing extras at training, community service, helping around the footy club.
“He’s earning the trust and respect back not only from his team but his club, he’s hating not being out there.
“The fact that it’s out in the media now – it happened in January. He’s been dealing with that for a long time, so we’re not going to change our verdict.
“We’ve worked with the AFL and we’re really clear on that. It’s going to be nice when he is available.”
Tigers defenders Ben Miller, Jacob Blight and Luke Trainor, with guidance from Nick Vlastuin and Nathan Broad, have been performing solidly in Balta's absence.
They play the Dockers at Barossa Park in Lyndoch from 12:35pm AEST on Sunday.
https://www.sen.com.au/news/2025/04/08/double-jeopardy-the-balta-conundrum-facing-richmond
