AFLW finals news: Kate Darby ban upheld at tribunal

A Lions star could miss the rest of the AFLW season after copping a record-equalling ban for a dangerous tackle on Demon Rhiannon Watt.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – OCTOBER 28: Kate Darby of the Cats runs with the ball during the 2023 AFLW Round 09 match between the Richmond Tigers and the Geelong Cats at Ikon Park, on October 28, 2023, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Martin Keep/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

Brisbane Lions defender Dee Heslop could miss the rest of the club’s finals campaign after she was suspended for an AFLW record-equalling three matches for a dangerous tackle.

Heslop looked shattered after the tribunal on Wednesday night banned her for three games – meaning she may miss out on a premiership if the Lions win it – for the dangerous tackle which concussed Melbourne’s Rhiannon Watt on Saturday.

Watt is in her own race against time to recover from the concussion symptoms with the club expecting the veteran tall to miss two games in-line with the league’s concussion protocols.

But there was a small silver lining late on Wednesday night for Lions small forward Charlotte Mullins whose one-match ban for striking Melbourne’s Shelley Heath with a high off-the-ball elbow was downgraded to a fine.

It means Mullins will be available to play in Saturday’s qualifying final against Adelaide at Norwood Oval after successfully downgrading the conduct from intentional to careless.

It was a marathon AFLW tribunal session with the three cases on Wednesday night lasting more than five hours in total.

Dee Heslop will serve a three game ban. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

But there was a major blow for 22-year-old Heslop who now needs the Lions to lose the first final and win the next two to have a chance to play in the AFLW Grand Final.

Heslop tried to argue she did not apply excessive force in the rotating tackle which slammed Watt’s head into the ground on Saturday.

Watt, 35, was knocked unconscious for about four seconds after the heavy tackle and told medical staff she experienced headaches and other concussion symptoms in the change rooms after the match.

Heslop said she was off-balance in the tackle and that it was Watt’s own body weight and swinging leg that contributed to the heavy fall and head injury.

But the tribunal determined Heslop applied excessive force in the tackle and could have taken action to lessen the risk of serious head injury for Watt.

The incident was graded careless conduct, severe impact and high contact, triggering the tribunal hearing and three-match suspension.

Charlotte Mullins will be available this weekend. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

Lions’ Mullins said she did not mean to make contact with Heath’s face and that her attempts to nudge her opponent in the side with her elbow “slipped up and gently glides over her face” on a lead inside the forward 50m.

Heath was standing in Mullins’ leading lane when the Brisbane forward made high contact with her raised right elbow and forearm, away from any other players.

But the tribunal cleared Mullins to play on Saturday, saying the elbow was not intentional, but rather careless conduct, high contact and low impact, resulting in a financial sanction.

Relying on similar defences used by Carlton’s Harry McKay and Gold Coast’s Charlie Ballard in tribunal cases this year, Mullins said she used a bumper bar technique to attempt to shift Heath, who played out the rest of the game.

Mullins immediately apologised and there was no remonstration from teammates.

Cats’ finals hopes struck by AFL’s bump crackdown

Geelong will be without key tall Kate Darby for Sunday’s elimination final against Essendon after her tribunal challenge failed on Wednesday night.

The Cats are on the hunt for a key forward-ruck replacement after losing one of the club’s most experienced and popular players for a high bump on Hawk Jasmine Fleming on Saturday.

Darby, 32, made contact with her left shoulder to Fleming’s jaw, sending the speedy Hawk sprawling to the ground in the third term of the last home and away game of the season.

The Cats were unable to convince the tribunal it was a brace rather than a bump from Darby, and that it was Fleming who caused the high contact with a late and sharp change of direction.

Darby, who had never previously been reported, said her “agility was not the strongest” and that she ”was already on a plane of movement” which couldn‘t be altered as contact occurred.

But the AFL has made a strong stance on protecting the head in collisions in the AFL this season and the AFLW tribunal decision to dismiss Darby‘s challenge on Wednesday night maintained that line.

Kate Darby will miss the Cats’ final against the Bombers. (Photo by Martin Keep/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

Vision showed Hawthorn‘s Fleming was in a vulnerable position running at full speed with her arms outstretched when the contact was made by Darby.

It was a heartbreaking blow for the Cats‘ 181cm ruck-forward who fought back from being delisted by Carlton after two games in 2017 to become a key player for Geelong over the past two seasons, despite sitting out 2021 to have a child.

The medical report confirmed Fleming suffered a chest wall contusion in the incident, but played out the remainder of the game.

The bump was graded high contact, medium impact and careless conduct by match review officer Michael Christian, triggering a one-match rough conduct ban.

The unsuccessful tribunal challenge means Darby will be missing on Sunday as the Cats chase their first AFLW finals win at GMHBA Stadium.

Geelong ran out 35-point winners over the Hawks on Saturday and will hope star ballwinner Georgie Prespakis can lead the Cats to a win over her sister, Madison, who is a star for Essendon.