By Peter Ryan, Andrew Wu and Jon Pierik
In today’s AFL Briefing, your wrap of footy news:
- Adelaide’s Matt Crouch is under police investigation for a clash with a Port Adelaide supporter as the bitter fallout from last weekend’s Showdown continues.
- Geelong veteran Zach Tuohy will retire at the end of the season, drawing the curtain on one of the most storied careers of the 21st century.
- Collingwood coach Craig McRae says the Magpies will complete a deep-dive review of a season gone wrong, and has indicated the Magpies will chase a marking forward through the trade period.
- Dyson Heppell will play a final game for Essendon at the Gabba on Saturday night after announcing his retirement last week.
- Port Adelaide will appeal the five-match ban given to Dan Houston by the AFL tribunal.
- Newly re-signed ruck Tim English will sit out the Western Bulldogs’ crucial final-round rivalry clash with GWS due to an ankle injury.
Port Adelaide to challenge Houston ban
Andrew Wu
Port Adelaide will take Dan Houston’s five-game suspension to the AFL’s appeals board in a last-ditch bid to keep running defender’s premiership dream alive.
The club confirmed on Wednesday it would fight the season-ending suspension meted out to Houston at the tribunal for his hit on Adelaide star Izak Rankine during Saturday night’s Showdown.
Dan Houston was handed a five-match ban for his bump on Izak Rankine.Credit: Getty Images
If Port can reduce the ban to four games, it would enable Houston to be eligible for the grand final should they qualify by playing every week in September.
Under the AFL’s tribunal guidelines, Port can appeal the decision on the grounds the penalty was “manifestly excessive”, the classification of the offence was “manifestly excessive”, an error of law had taken place or the tribunal’s decision was so unreasonable that no tribunal acting reasonably could have reached that conclusion with the evidence before it.
The tribunal found that Houston had time to think and weigh up his options and he chose not to tackle.
“He ran at speed for several metres and forcefully bumped Rankine. We are satisfied he made forceful contact to Rankine’s upper shoulder and neck,” tribunal chair Jeff Gleeson, KC, said.
“His forceful contact also resulted in Rankine’s head making forceful contact with the ground.
“Although Houston’s feet did not leave the ground, and he appears to have made some attempt to lower his body, the time he had to decide not to bump, the vulnerability of Rankine and the speed and force of his impact lead us to conclude that this was a serious breach of the duty of care.
“Although Rankine could have expected to be tackled, he could not reasonably have expected to be bumped high.”
The Brisbane Lions’ Charlie Cameron and Greater Western Sydney’s Toby Bedford last month had three-game suspensions for rough conduct overturned by the appeals board.
Tuohy calls time
Andrew Wu
Geelong veteran Zach Tuohy has announced he will retire at the end of the season, drawing the curtain on one of the most storied careers of the 21st century.
Retiring Cat Zach Tuohy.Credit: Getty Images
Tuohy may not have won the individual accolades of the modern-day greats but departs the competition as one of the finest overseas-born players to have played in the V/AFL.
He will play out the finals series for the Cats before bowing out alongside club great Tom Hawkins, who announced earlier this month he would pull the pin at the end of the year.
Hailing from Portlaoise in Ireland, where he played Gaelic football, Tuohy is one of just three players from his country to have won a premiership, along with former Sydney defender Tadhg Kennelly and Cats teammate Mark O’Connor.
Outside Melbourne great Jimmy Stynes, who won the Brownlow Medal in 1991, Tuohy is arguably the best league footballer to have come out of Ireland.
On 286 games, he needs just one more match to break Peter Bell’s record for the most games played by a player born outside of Australia. He will depart as the Irish games record holder. Bell was born in South Korea.
A speedy defender with a booming right boot, Tuohy started his career at Carlton, where he played 120 games from 2011-16 before being traded to Geelong.
As a Cat, he flourished under Chris Scott, finishing third in the club’s best and fairest in his first year at the club in 2017, and has been a regular in the hoops at a time when Geelong have consistently been a premiership contender.
“While there is a lot of footy left to play this year, I want to take this opportunity to thank you all the members and fans for their support. I knew when I came to the Cats I was in for a treat, and I didn’t think I fully appreciated just how incredible the journey would be,” Tuohy said.
Magpies to conduct ‘deep dive’ review, chase marking forward
Jon Pierik
Collingwood coach Craig McRae says the Magpies will complete a deep-dive review of a season gone wrong, and has indicated the Magpies will chase a marking forward through the trade period.
Much to ponder: Magpies coach Craig McRae.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
Sore forward Daniel McStay will be rested from Friday night’s clash against Melbourne, almost certainly the Magpies’ final game of the season unless there is a minor miracle, and they scrape into the finals.
The Magpies are in 10th spot, four points and a large chunk of percentage outside the top eight.
The Magpies have followed the Cats of 2022 in failing to make the finals a year after a premiership, sparking a review of what could have been done better. They have already made off-field moves, headlined by football manager Graham Wright – who has been on sabbatical – now leaving the club.
McRae said on Wednesday that he reflected at times through the season “but we’ll certainly get an opportunity in the next coming week to really take a deep dive into what went well and other opportunities to keep growing”.
He said a review would be multi-faceted.
“I think we are winning in a lot of levels. Are we winning in all? It’s hard to say. I don’t think we can sit here and say we are, but we are doing a lot right,” McRae said.
McRae also seeks feedback from his own mentor, former ironman great Trevor Hendy, who is now a life coach, mentor and author.
List management will also be an issue, for the Magpies could have 11 players on their list aged 30 plus in 2025, including club great Scott Pendlebury, who has signed a one-year contract extension.
“What we have is great experience … you can’t buy that. You have got experience for our young guys. Ed Allan is a developing midfielder, he has ‘Pendles’ next to him. You have got Nick Daicos being mentored by Pendles and Steele [Sidebottom] and ‘Crispy’ [Jack Crisp], these guys.
“Experience is great in certain parts of your game, and it looks really old when you are losing, doesn’t it? That’s the reality of our game. But we are hanging on to our experience at the minute.”
Heading into the October trade period, McRae said the Magpies “were keen on any player who we think can make us better”.
While he joked he wanted a key forward, an inside midfielder, a defender and wingmen, it’s the key forward that resonated in McRae’s response.
“We have Dan [McStay] and ‘Checkers’ [Brody Mihocek], who are incredible with what they do, most teams would be craving for a [Charlie] Curnow or [Harry] McKay in their forward line, wouldn’t they? Not many have it. They are hard to find.”
McRae said Wright, who has spent a large chunk of the year in Europe but remained as a club consultant, had been missed.
“I think he has been missed a lot, just me personally … I have missed his friendship,” McRae said, adding Brendon Bolton and Justin Leppitsch had taken on “two or three jobs”.
Asked if added administrative had taken a toll on the team, McRae replied: “These are the things that we will reflect on.”
Police probe Adelaide’s Crouch for clash with Port fan
AAP
Adelaide midfielder Matt Crouch is under police investigation for a clash with a Port Adelaide supporter as the bitter fallout from last weekend’s Showdown continues.
Crouch flicked the cap off a Port supporter’s head when exiting Adelaide Oval after last Saturday night’s fiery clash between the South Australian rivals.
Matt Crouch (right) and the Crows leave the field after the Showdown loss to Port.Credit: AFL Photos
The Power supporter, who was leaning over a boundary fence and yelling abuse at Crows players as they left the field, reported the incident to police.
“It’s one I can’t comment around, there’s an investigation going on at the moment, but Matt has got our full support,” Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks told reporters on Wednesday.
SA Police confirmed an investigation was under way following a complaint from the Port supporter.
The Crouch incident follows Port defender Dan Houston being banned for five games for a bump that knocked out Adelaide’s Izak Rankine in the match won by the Power.
Port’s mascot was struck in the head by a young Crows fan before the game, suffering a bloodied nose. No action was taken because the Adelaide supporter is a minor.
Power forward Willie Rioli was also racially abused online following the game in an act condemned by both clubs.
Crouch was involved in several on-field skirmishes with Port Adelaide players during the game.
In the aftermath, footage shows the Port supporter leaning over a fence and abusing Crows players as they exited through the players’ race.
Crouch, not breaking stride, flicked the cap off the fan’s head.
“It’s a hard one ... the reason that we, I guess, allow fans close to the boundary line is for those kids that just love footy,” Nicks said.
“They have idols and they have heroes and they want to come down and get amongst it and [take] selfies and that’s the really positive part of our game that we love.”
Asked if a proverbial line had been crossed, Nicks replied: “It’s just passion for sport. It was a big week, a big Showdown.
“When adrenaline is pumping and emotions are high, sometimes we can overstep the line and it can happen to anyone. Yeah, some could argue there was a little bit of that on the night.”
Heppell to play for Bombers one last time
Peter Ryan
Popular Essendon veteran Dyson Heppell will play a final game for the Bombers at the Gabba on Saturday night after announcing his retirement last week.
The 32-year-old was not selected to play against the Swans last Friday night, senior coach Brad Scott adamant the midfielder wanted to be selected on merit with the Bombers still in finals contention.
Scott said the match committee did not consider Heppell in their best 23.
Essendon’s Dyson Heppell was not given a farewell game in front of home fans.Credit: AFL Photos
The decision caused some controversy with club great Matthew Lloyd saying he would have liked to see Heppell play in front of Victorian fans for the final time as he believed his presence would have given the team a lift.
Heppell played 252 games, captained the Bombers, was All-Australian and won a best and fairest in a career that was interrupted in 2016 when he was one of 34 players suspended by the Court of Arbitration for Sport for a year amid the Essendon drugs scandal.
Heppell was respected throughout the competition for his skill and loyalty to the Bombers in a difficult period when he was at the peak of his career.
English to miss Giants’ clash
AAP
Newly re-signed ruck Tim English will sit out the Western Bulldogs’ crucial final-round rivalry clash with GWS due to an ankle injury.
English missed last week’s thumping win over North Melbourne, with rejuvenated big man Rory Lobb impressing in his absence after another positional shift.
The 27-year-old didn’t train at the Whitten Oval on Wednesday and Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge all but ruled English out of taking on the Giants.
“He’s close,” Beveridge said of English, who last week turned his back on free agency to stay with the Dogs until the end of 2029. “Hopefully he gets a chance [to return] and we get a look by winning this weekend, but we don’t anticipate he’s going to be available this week.”
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