Match review officer Michael Christian has handed a two-match sanction to Carlton skipper Patrick Cripps for his bump on Brisbane’s Callum Ah Chee.
The incident was graded as careless conduct, high contact, and high impact, given Cripps elected to bump and leave the ground, and Ah Chee was forced from the field with a concussion.
Callum Ah Chee after his collision with Patrick Cripps.Credit: Getty Images
Carlton will likely appeal the MRO’s decision at the AFL Tribunal, where they will likely argue Cripps made a genuine attempt to contest the ball, especially given his hands were out, and the collision was a football incident.
Ah Chee was concussed from this hit from the Carlton captain.Credit: Fox Footy
The key issue to play out at the tribunal will be what duty of care Cripps had towards Ah Chee, given he elected to bump and lifted his feet off the ground, as the 2022 AFL guidelines state if a player elects to bump, they take on the risk - and consequences - if it goes awry.
Carlton will likely attempt to make a case that Cripps was making a reasonable play on the ball and the contact was incidental and use the tribunal guidelines, which state that “unintentional conduct won’t be deemed as careless if the player was contesting the ball and it was reasonable for the player to contest the ball in that way”.
The impact would be hard to argue down from high, given Ah Chee’s concussion.
Carlton coach Michael Voss defended Cripps’ action post-game, saying the collision represented “a good contest”.
“The umpire probably told the story; he didn’t pay a free kick, did he? So clearly he felt the arms were out and it was evenly contested,” Voss said.
Voss said in what he considered a pretty even contest, that there were microseconds in it and the game doesn’t enable players to make decisions that quickly. He also said the outcome of Ah Chee’s concussion should not factor into the decision.
“I don’t think he [Cripps] is there to cradle a person to the ground, is he? It was unfortunate, we hope he’s OK, clearly we have empathy on that side of things,” Voss said.
“But we’ve also got to respect that the game’s going to be evenly contested, and that looked like an even contest to me.”
During pre-season, Collingwood’s Brayden Maynard was suspended for two matches for a similar bump on Greater Western Sydney’s Daniel Lloyd, which the tribunal upheld as a careless striking charge.
The AFL, represented by Andrew Woods, successfully argued Maynard owed a duty of care, as “... It’s clear to Maynard there was going to be some form of contact with Lloyd given his momentum and direction of travel.
“…while not intentionally trying to strike, on any view [his action was] careless and breached his duty of care,” Woods said.
However, earlier this year, West Coast’s Willie Rioli was initially charged with rough conduct during a heavy clash in a marking contest with Gold Coast’s Matt Rowell but was cleared by the AFL Tribunal.
The Cripps bump has come under massive scrutiny.Credit: Fox Footy
The club successfully argued contact was made in a marking contest where he was contesting the ball and therefore should not be considered rough conduct, comparing the incident with Nick Riewoldt’s famous grab in 2004. However, it also raised questions over player’s duty of care to each other.
If it goes to appeal, the tribunal will be on Tuesday.
Carlton next play Melbourne at the MCG this Saturday night, followed by Collingwood in round 23, also at the MCG, on the Sunday afternoon.
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