Greater Western Sydney superstar Toby Greene has copped a three-game prohibition astatine the AFL tribunal and won't play again this season, aft it was deemed helium made intentional interaction with an umpire during the Giants' elimination last triumph implicit the Swans connected Saturday.
The three-match suspension means Greene volition miss Friday's knockout semi-final against Geelong, arsenic good arsenic his side's imaginable preliminary last and expansive last fixtures.
After the AFL argued for a suspension of nary little than six games, Greene's ineligible squad called for nary prohibition and alternatively a good of $20,000-25,000.
The tribunal sheet past intelligibly compromised successful handing down a three-game suspension.
Greene was sent consecutive to the tribunal for a bump connected umpire Matt Stevic successful the Giants' one-point triumph implicit the Swans successful Launceston.
The two-time All-Australian admitted interaction with Stevic was made arsenic helium walked toward the Giants' squad huddle astatine three-quarter time, but helium pleaded not blameworthy connected the ground that it wasn't intentional.
In defence of his closeness to Stevic, Greene said "there were immoderate large noises astir me", and helium had to get adjacent to him to get his constituent crossed during a tense conversation.
When responding to wherefore helium made interaction with the whistleblower, the 27-year-old said helium was "beginning to rotation to debar contact" erstwhile helium walked past him.
It was past AFL ineligible counsel Jeff Gleeson QC's crook to situation Greene – and helium was ruthless successful his argument.
Gleeson contended that Greene could person "easily followed" the way of teammate Harry Perryman, earlier adding that it was his occupation to power the absorption of his movements yet inactive walked into him, bumping him with a shoulder.
"I made contact, I didn't bump him," Greene said.
Gleeson deed back, saying helium "veered towards" Stevic.
But Greene rejected that claim.
"I was engaging successful a discussion," Greene said.
"That's wherefore I was highly adjacent to him."
In Gleeson's last submission pursuing a 25-minute interruption successful the hearing, helium said "umpires are untouchable".
"It's cardinal to our crippled … that the umpire is respected," Gleeson added.
"The infinitesimal immoderate of america deviate from enforcing that rule, due to the fact that it's hard, is the infinitesimal we alteration the crippled and the mode our umpires are treated."
Gleeson besides said Greene "complained, swore, got successful his look and bumped him", portion adding that his actions were "insolent and contemptuous".
Greene's representative, Ben Ihle QC, agreed with Gleeson that the interaction was "a unspeakable look".
But helium said the question the tribunal indispensable see was: "At the constituent interaction was made, what was going done Toby Greene's mind?"
Ihle argued that the tribunal mustn't marque a determination based connected the look, but what was going done Greene's head.
"Mr Greene should person ne'er enactment himself successful that situation, but that doesn't mean helium made intentional contact," Ihle added.
Astoundingly, Greene had headed into today's tribunal proceeding having already been recovered blameworthy of a complaint 22 times, portion helium had besides been suspended for a full of 8 games and been fined an accumulative $29,350.
The 176-game AFL vocation of the weapon Giant has been shrouded successful contention since his accomplishment astatine GWS via the 2011 nationalist draft.
In attendance astatine today's tribunal lawsuit were seat Gleeson arsenic good arsenic sheet members Shane Wakelin, Stephen Jurica and Richard Loveridge, portion Greene was represented by Ihle.
For a regular dose of the champion of the breaking quality and exclusive contented from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
English (US) ·