AFL MRO news: Verdict on Zach Merrett tackle, James Sicily and Rhyan Mansell sent straight to tribunal

Essendon skipper Zach Merrett was in the crosshairs for a tackle that smashed Carlton’s Alex Cincotta. See the video and the verdict from the Match Review Officer.

St Kilda's Dan Butler tackle on Sydney's Nick Blakey during the AFL Round 13 Pride Game match between the Sydney Swans and St. Kilda Saints at the SCG on June 8, 2023. Photo by Phil Hillyard (Image Supplied for Editorial Use only – **NO ON SALES** – ©Phil Hillyard )

Essendon captain Zach Merrett is free to take on Fremantle after escaping a second suspension in as many months for a borderline tackle on Carlton’s Alex Cincotta.

Merrett missed the Anzac Day loss to Collingwood after the tribunal upheld his dangerous tackle on Melbourne’s Tom Sparrow in the aftermath of round 4.

Merrett was again instrumental in Essendon’s victory against Carlton on Sunday night, as he moved forward to absorb a tag from Ed Curnow.

But with 64 seconds on the clock, he dragged Cincotta to the ground in a collision that saw the Blues first-year player hit his head on the ground.

The match review officer released its review of both Sunday matches late on Monday and said: “No charges were laid and there were no incidents requiring a detailed explanation.”

The MRO guidelines refer to players in a vulnerable position and whether they have been slung, driven or dumped into the ground with “excessive force”.

Zach Merrett's tackle on Alex Cincotta. Picture: Fox Footy

Think the MRO will have a look at this one as well.

Cincotta has both arms free at one point but Merrett regrips before hitting the turf.#SuperCoach | #AFLFantasypic.twitter.com/Xard4bmeL3

— JD // FTTV (@jacksondavey) June 11, 2023

Merrett appeared to grab hold of Cincotta’s left elbow as he fell to ground, with the first-year Blues defender bumping his head on the ground.

While Cincotta did still attempt to brace for contact, Merrett can count himself lucky given Dan Butler released Nick Blakey late but was still suspended for a week.

St Kilda told the AFL on Monday they would challenge Dan Butler’s one-week suspension for his dangerous tackle on Sydney’s Nick Blakey.

Butler’s chase-down tackle in the middle of the SCG saw him drag down Blakey as he pinned the Sydney defender’s arm.

He did let go of Blakey’s arm before his head hit the ground so the Saints would likely argue that he did not breach his duty of care to his opponent.

The AFL is keen to hold all of the tribunal cases on Tuesday, with Richmond’s Rhyan Mansell also directly referred to the tribunal after his collision that concussed James Aish.

Hawks captain staring at huge tackle ban

Hawthorn captain James Sicily has been sent straight to the tribunal with responsibility for Hugh McCluggage’s concussion despite the freak nature of their MCG incident on Saturday.

McCluggage was concussed and will miss the Lions’ next game.

James Sicily faces some time on the sidelines after his tackle on Hugh McCluggage.

In a week in which St Kilda will appeal Dan Butler’s one-week suspension for a tackle on Nick Blakey, the legality of the tackle will again be a significant talking point.

Sicily’s base sanction for his tribunal case would be three or more weeks if he cannot make a successful submission or downgrade the charge.

Sicily dived to tackle Brisbane’s McCluggage during Hawthorn’s upset win at the MCG and teammate Tyler Brockman also seemed to contribute to the angle at which the Lions midfielder rammed into the ground.

But MRO boss Michael Christian ruled that Sicily had slung McCluggage with enough force to be responsible for the result of an incident graded as high contact and severe impact.

Sicily grabbed hold of McCluggage’s arm and did not let go until McCluggage’s head hit the MCG turf.

The AFL’s tribunal chairman Jeff Gleeson had made clear in recent weeks that if players let go of a pinned arm with enough time to allow them to brace their fall it is a mitigating factor in MRO and tribunal decisions.

Sicily has just returned from a one-week suspension for a high hit on St Kilda’s Anthony Caminiti but could miss games against Gold Coast, Carlton and GWS after Hawthorn’s round 14 bye.

Mansell collided with Aish and was only a step late as both players charged at the ball.

But given he turned to brace for contact and did not reach for the ball, he was seen to be responsible for the clear shoulder-to-head contact.

Rhyan Mansell is facing a suspension. Picture: Getty Images

Mansell does not have the profile of Sicily but has played a handy role this year as a pressuring forward.

Given Aish’s concussion and what was clearly an illegal bump under current AFL rules, the MRO made the decision to grade his hit as severe rather than high.

A high designation would have handed him a two-week suspension but instead he will have to argue his case or face a ban of three or more weeks.

Clubs ignore AFL’s dangerous tackle memo

– Sam Landsberger

The AFL’s memo on dangerous tackles has been tossed in the bin by several clubs who believe suspensions have become a lottery.

Western Bulldogs, Port Adelaide, Adelaide and West Coast are among several clubs who decided not to go through the AFL’s memo with their players.

“A package came out from the AFL around tackles and ultimately you choose whether or not you actually show your players,” Dogs coach Luke Beveridge said.

“Because they’re just going to be unlucky if we keep going the way we are.

“If we’re looking to evolve … focus on if there’s any intent to actually hurt a player. It probably should be the civil test. There’s accidents in sport.”

Eagles coach Adam Simpson and Crows coach Matthew Nicks confirmed they also didn’t go through the AFL’s memo with their players.

“We’re trying to protect the players … but it’s just a challenge at this point because the game is so much faster than what it is when you slow it down and look at it in slow motion,” Nicks said.

St Kilda on Saturday night was yet to officially challenge Dan Butler’s one-match suspension, although the goalkicker is expected to contest the charge at the tribunal on Tuesday.

It was Butler’s ban for his tackle on Sydney’s Nick Blakey on Thursday night that caused so much outrage – just days after Corey McKernan told the Herald Sun that players should think about not tackling late in this year’s preliminary finals if victory was guaranteed.

Blakey was not concussed and Butler shoved him after completing the tackle, thinking it was executed perfectly and he would be awarded a free kick.

If Butler can’t beat the charge, he would become the 35th player suspended this season and the 19th for a dangerous tackle.

Hawthorn captain James Sicily’s tackle on Hugh McCluggage will also be looked at on Sunday while Western Bulldogs skipper Marcus Bontempelli has no case to answer for his collision with Port Adelaide’s Dan Houston on Friday night.

McCluggage left the game in the last quarter of the Lions’ loss to Hawthorn. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

Confused players spoke out against this year’s avalanche of tackle bans on Saturday as former greats feared their game was slowly morphing into Gaelic football, where tackling opponents is banned.

“A package came out from the AFL around tackles and ultimately you choose whether or not you actually show your players,” premiership Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge said.

“Because they’re just going to be unlucky if we keep going the way we are.

“If we‘re looking to evolve … focus on if there’s any intent to actually hurt a player. It probably should be the civil test. There’s accidents in sport.”

Port Adelaide leader Darcy Byrne-Jones said he had not seen the AFL’s memo.

“It’s a tough one because you play your whole junior career and up until now tackles that were considered to be good tackles are getting people suspended,” Byrne-Jones told SEN.

Teammate Connor Rozee said on 3AW: “I feel like we just need to make the rules a little bit clearer. We get taught as footballers to be really aggressive and stamp your authority with your pressure and your tackling”.

Adelaide football director Mark Ricciuto outed Crow Luke Pedlar for a sneaky tactic after he was given a free kick for being dangerously tackled by West Coast’s Rhett Bazzo.

“He stayed down like just about all the AFL players are until the whistle blew,” Ricciuto said.

“Stays down, as soon as the whistle blew, pops up. Nothing against Luke – that’s what all the players are doing.”

Butler’s suspension caused outrage. Photo by Phil Hillyard

On Butler, Beveridge said: “Young Blakey hasn‘t got the broadest shoulders – if he’s tackling a ruckman then maybe his head doesn’t hit the ground. So you can be a bit stiff depending on who you tackle … there’s all those variables”.

Jimmy Bartel couldn’t believe Butler’s tackle was graded as medium impact and did not believe it was a reportable offence.

“Dan Butler shouldn’t be the guinea pig to try to change behaviour,” Bartel said on 3AW.

Australian football Legend Leigh Matthews – who used to instruct his Brisbane Lions players to hurt opponents by dumping them in tackles – said tackling was going the way of the bump.

“If you tackle an opponent to the ground it’s the tackler’s liability to make sure that player doesn’t hit his head on the ground,” Matthews said on 3AW.

“Is the game going to be any worse? The game is no worse for the fact that you can’t bump a bloke in the head anymore.”

Butler’s incident was similar to Bradley Close, who was suspended for one match for tackling Crows captain Jordan Dawson.

Tribunal chairman Jeff Gleeson said after upholding Close’s ban: “We accept that players tackle by grabbing an arm. But if the tackler realises, or should realise, that the tackled player is coming to ground with momentum and does not release the tackled players’ arm that he might have used to protect himself he will likely have breached his duty of care to that player. That is what happened here.”