Geelong has a lot to lose by accepting Patrick Dangerfield’s one-match ban, says Chris McDermott
THE Dangerfield decision could be a defining moment for Geelong – and Danger – as it chases premiership glory, says Chris McDermott.
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NOT Guilty. Surely.
Wrong. Guilty as charged.
Patrick Dangerfield and Geelong have accepted the Match Review Panel’s decision for his tackle on Carlton big man Matthew Kreuzer and the one-match suspension without challenge.
Case closed.
I hear it but I don’t believe it.
It will be a defining moment for Geelong in the 2017 season.
It could be an even bigger moment for Dangerfield himself.
It has most likely cost him a second Brownlow Medal and it could cost his club four vital premiership points and a possible top four-finish.
Some will call the outcome karma for his recent theatrics and confrontation with Kane Cornes.
Others will stick to the facts and make their own assessment on the legality of Patty’s action.
The tackle has come under intense scrutiny in recent times and the game and the players are determined to clean it up.
Concussion is part of the issue but, as we have seen in the NRL, there can be far worse outcomes if the method of tackling is not addressed.
The head is off limits.
Everyone gets it and those that don’t should not be listened to.
Deliberately driving a player’s head into the ground is also off limits. There is no possible argument here.
Several studies are in progress looking at the damage done by concussions and while the AFL has recently introduced new protocols for players hurt on game day there are surprisingly no protocols around how long a player must rest for and avoid another collision.
In the USA, the NFL has a 19-day concussion rule where players are simply not allowed to return to practice for 19 days following a diagnosis and even then its only light and largely non-contact.
It is believed multiple head injuries can cause the more life-threatening condition of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and cause violent mood swings and even suicidal thoughts, but due to the nature of CTE, it can only be diagnosed correctly after death.
You can understand the anxiety and caution, but a player must still be innocent until proven guilty.
From the different views I’ve seen of the Dangerfield tackle several things are clear, one is not.
The tackle is not overly aggressive.
It is not a vengeful, there was not two movements which is often a determining factor and it does not appear to be a tackle with an intent to hurt.
Dangerfield loses his feet upon laying the tackle and as a consequence, he has some matters out of his control.
He falls towards the ground, rolls Kreuzer onto his side and it is unclear whether the big Blue’s head hits the ground first or his left shoulder.
Kreuzer instantly goes for his wrist rather than his head before slumping to the ground for a brief moment.
He rises, takes a deep breath and makes his way to the interchange with a trainer.
He doesn’t immediately appear concussed.
Shaken but not stirred.
He would prove to be more stirred than shaken after the doctors’ observations.
Dangerfield will now miss just the one game after accepting his the verdict and his punishment.
He had already suggested his innocence but as we know issues like this are not just about guilt or innocence but about risk versus reward and the look of the game.
The risk was too great for Dangerfield to roll the dice and challenge the findings.
Dangerfield is all about team. Those that say otherwise do not truly know this young man.
In a season of turmoil on and off the field, we should have expected something like this to happen and there’s still four weeks to go before finals.
I thought he was not guilty.
Shaun Burgoyne got off for a similar tackle which concussed Swan Sam Reid in May.
Dangerfield was careful in the tackle and he appeared to do everything within his control to minimise any impact.
Precedence has been set.
But in 2017 rules are there to be broken.
Originally published as Geelong has a lot to lose by accepting Patrick Dangerfield’s one-match ban, says Chris McDermott
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