By Peter Ryan
In today’s AFL Briefing, your daily wrap of footy news:
- Richmond’s Rhyan Mansell is offered a three-week ban for pushing opponent into marking contest.
- Harry McKay’s availability for Carlton’s match against Collingwood still unclear.
- Melbourne young gun cleared of serious knee damage.
Mansell suspended for pushing rival into marking contest
The AFL has acted on players pushing their opponents into a marking contest by suspending Richmond forward Rhyan Mansell for three weeks after he shoved his Saints opponent Liam O’Connell into a marking contest.
O’Connell was charging back to contest a mark when he lost his balance as a result of the push, collided with Tigers’ forward Tom Lynch and was concussed.
Mansell faces a three-week ban for shoving his opponent into a marking contestCredit: Getty Images
Several players escaped penalty from the match review officer for similar incidents in the pre-season and early rounds. Richmond youngster Sam Lalor’s jaw was broken when West Coast’s Reuben Ginbey pushed him into his teammate who was flying for a mark. Ginbey was not cited.
After Saturday’s game Richmond coach Adem Yze said he would be surprised if Mansell was penalised.
“I think they’ll take every incident as it is, but we had Sammy Lalor break his jaw if it is a similar incident,” Yze said. “It’s pretty hard to change the rules during the season. As I said, if it’s deemed inappropriate we’ll deal with it.”
After pressure from the media to deal with the issue, the AFL had reminded players they owed a duty of care to opponents and that such actions could lead to a rough conduct charge, which is what Mansell was charged with after pushing O’Connell. The MRO graded the contact high and severe with his action considered careless. He was the only player to receive a ban from Saturday’s games.
McKay plays scratch match but remains in doubt for Pies clash
Collingwood premiership defender Billy Frampton looks set to replace injured defender Reef McInnes for the blockbuster Thursday-night match at the MCG against the winless Carlton, while key Blue Harry McKay remains a wait-and-see proposition to play.
Carlton star Harry McKay remains a wait-and-see proposition to play against Collingwood.Credit: Getty Images
When the Magpies trained on Sunday morning, Frampton was part of the main defensive group alongside skipper Darcy Moore and high-flier Jeremy Howe, while McKay played in an internal scratch match with the Blues VFL squad on Saturday morning.
The Coleman medallist has missed the past two matches for personal reasons and a decision is not expected to be made on his availability until selection on Wednesday.
Elijah Hollands also played in the scratch match, but he is not yet in a position to play after also taking time away from the club on the eve of the season for personal reasons.
Carlton are desperate to break through for a win after losing their first three matches. They gave up a 41-point deficit in a shock loss to Richmond in round one before competitive losses to Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs.
Ten of their 11 goals against the Bulldogs came from talls, Brodie Kemp (five goals), Charlie Curnow (three goals) and Lewis Young (two goals) as their small forwards continued their struggles hitting the scoreboard.
Frampton is yet to play for the Magpies this season. He is competing with Charlie Dean for the spot to replace McInnes, who will miss the season after having a knee reconstruction.
Ed Allan is also in line for selection after being best on ground in the VFL a week ago.
Unlike the Blues, the Magpies have all their key players available for the round-four match.
Only McInnes, Ash Johnson, Harvey Harrison and Tom Mitchell did not train. Dan Houston left the track early, but there were no concerns about the boom recruit’s availability.
Collingwood have won five of their past six against Carlton, but four of those wins were by a goal or less.
Demon’s knee cleared of serious damage
Promising Melbourne midfielder Xavier Lindsay will only be sidelined for a short time after scans on his injured left knee revealed he suffered a sprain of his medial ligament early in Saturday’s loss to Gold Coast.
Amid fears he may have suffered a season-ending ACL injury, Lindsay was subbed out of the match. But the Demons confirmed on Sunday the first round draft pick had escaped the serious injury.
Melbourne’s Xavier Lindsay clutches his injured knee against the Suns on Saturday.Credit: AFL Photos
He will miss Friday night’s match against Geelong at GMHBA Stadium with his return date likely to become clearer during the week.
Demons’ football manager Alan Richardson said the diagnosis was a relief.
“In positive news, Xavier has been cleared of any major damage to his left knee, with scans instead showing a sprain of his medial ligament,” Richardson said.
“While Xavier is unlikely to be available for our next match against Geelong, he will be assessed during the week to guide his likely return date.”
Lindsay, who was pick No.11 in the 2024 national draft, showed in round one he had the potential to become an excellent midfielder. Harvey Langford, pick No.6 in the 2024 national draft, was Melbourne’s best midfielder against the Suns according to coach Simon Goodwin.
The two players have been the bright lights in an otherwise disappointing start by the Demons who have lost their first three matches with a respectable three-point loss to the Giants in round one followed by a 59 point loss to North Melbourne and a 58-point loss to the Suns.
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