"That’s abundantly clear now" - Essendon Bombers coach Brad Scott criticizes the AFL for penalizing players based on outcomes and not actions
Essendon Bombers coach Brad Scott criticized the one-week suspension handed to key players of the Greater Western Sydney Giants. On Saturday, April 20, GWS competed against Carlton Football Club, and the umpires penalized the Giants’ captain, Toby Greene, and their forward player, Jesse Hogan, with a one-week suspension.
Greene was involved in an incident with Blues' Jordan Boyd during the fourth quarter of the match, resulting in his suspension for a marking contest. Meanwhile, Hogan had an unfortunate incident with Lewis Young in the goal square and was suspended on the grounds of intentional conduct, low impact, and high contact.
Giants Coach Adam Kingsley believed Toby Greene should not have received the penalty. Essendon Bombers coach Brad Scott also agreed with Kingsley, and in a post-tournament press conference, he spoke about Greene's suspension. He said (via Fox Sports):
"We do seek clarification, very rarely, but sometimes on how we should instruct the players – I couldn’t help but notice Adam Kingsley’s comment (after the Greene incident). (Kingsley said) you’re allowed to look at the ball, launch and try to mark the ball, and (Peter Wright) is just nodding his head saying, ‘Yes, I agree with that’.
“Clearly the AFL determine a penalty based on outcome, not on action – that’s abundantly clear now to everyone," he added.
Toby Greene moved side-on while taking the ball, resulting in his shoulder hitting Boyd. However, Greene was not sent for a tribunal immediately as Boyd was quickly backed to his feet in no time.
Nonetheless, the Giants were unhappy with the suspension and challenged the decision. They confirmed their decision by sharing a post on X (formerly Twitter) saying:
"Anyone know the number for Charlie Cameron's lawyer? Anyway, we'll challenge Toby Greene and Jesse Hogan's suspensions at the AFL Tribunal on Tuesday night."
Essendon Bombers Peter Wright returns after suspension
Essendon Bombers forward Peter Wright was also given a four-week suspension in an incident against Harry Cunningham. He will return to action this week.
Although Wright has not played in tournaments for a month now, Essendon coach Brad Scott has shown confidence in him and, speaking of Wright, he said (as quoted by ESPN):
"I doubt there's a better-prepared player going into this round of football than Peter Wright. He's just worked extremely hard, been able to work on all elements of his game and he's obviously in peak condition going in."
Essendon Bombers will next play a match against Collingwood on Thursday, April 25 in Round 7.