As Collingwood defender Brayden Maynard prepares to face the tribunal for his hit on Melbourne’s Angus Brayshaw, the rest of the league awaits a verdict which some believe could shape the future of the game.
Key points:
- Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin says the Brayden Maynard case will come down to the definition of “duty of care” on the football field
- Maynard’s hit on Angus Brayshaw will be put under the microscope at the tribunal on Tuesday evening
- Angus Brayshaw’s brother Hamish suggested the verdict could be influenced by the AFL’s desire to protect Collingwood’s premiership chances
Maynard faces the prospect of missing the rest of the Magpies’ premiership tilt over his jumping attempted smother that knocked out Melbourne’s Angus Brayshaw.
The Collingwood defender has labelled the incident, which was graded severe impact, high contact and careless conduct, a “footy act”.
Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin said the case would define what players’ duty of care looked like in such “football acts”.
“Ultimately, we’re looking at what a duty of care looks like in this space,” Goodwin said on Tuesday.
“To have a player concussed (unconscious) for two minutes, I think we’re all looking at the different types of footy acts that are out there and the space that we’ve come to in this area.
“We’ve come a long way as an industry about how we protect the head — whether that be within tackles, within bumps, with a whole range of different football acts.
“This is another example of what does a duty of care look like in a football act and the whole footy world will be looking at what the outcome of this result is and we’ll certainly be one of those clubs.”
Angus Brayshaw’s brother Hamish suggested the timing of the season would be an influence on the tribunal’s verdict.
Speaking to the Shelter FootyCast. Hamish Brayshaw — who on Monday night won the WAFL’s Sandover Medal as the league’s best and fairest — said the AFL would be interested in protecting Collingwood’s premiership chances.
“It will set a precedent for what is going to happen for a long time in football I think, whether he gets off or whether he doesn’t,” Brayshaw said.
“I think if this happened in Round 3, sweet no worries mate you’ve got weeks, the scrutiny comes under the fact that I think the AFL are desperate for Collingwood to win a premiership.
“They want the supporters to go nuts, they’ve got 106,000 members, they want to do everything they can, in my opinion, for that to happen.
“The world wants to see that happen, or the Collingwood fans do anyway and they have a very loud voice so a lot of that is driven by the Collingwood fans and I think a few people at the AFL who want to see Collingwood win.
“But duty of care for a player, whether that comes into account, I don’t know.”
ABC/AAP
Source: AFL NEWS ABC
