Livewire Cats forward Brad Close will miss Friday night’s clash against Richmond, unable to overturn a one-week ban at the AFL tribunal for a dangerous tackle on Crows skipper Jordan Dawson.
The 24-year-old was sanctioned for the tackle during Saturday’s win over Adelaide, that saw Dawson’s head hit the turf.
Despite Dawson escaping the incident without a concussion, Close was hit with a one-week ban as the AFL continues its strict crackdown on dangerous tackling.
Geelong fronted the tribunal to argue it was Dawson’s attempt to break the tackle coupled with the weight difference between the two players that caused the Crows mid to slam into the ground.
“(Dawson) put the ball under his right hand, because he is going to burst through this tackle,” Close’s lawyer Ben Ihle argued during the hearing.
“That could almost be a Teddy Whitten-type shot, with the ball tucked under his arm.
“Dawson is the one that is driving these two forward, and Mr Close is just trying to hold him up under these circumstances.
“But the bigger, heavier Dawson is driving this in a particular direction.
“He tries to burst this tackle, but he’s not successful. And because he’s not successful, he loses his feet and starts to fall to the ground
“Mr Close is being pulled down by the bigger, heavier player.”
The jury, led by tribunal chairman Jeff Gleeson, upheld the original charge.
“We accept that players tackle by grabbing an arm,” Gleeson said.
“But if the tackler realises or should realise that the tackled player is coming to ground with momentum – and does not release the tackled player’s arm that he might have used to protect himself – he is likely to have breached his duty of care to the player.”
It will ruin a streak of 55 consecutive games played by Close, which included being a part of the 2022 premiership team.
It’s the second-longest current streak of any Cats player, the most being Tom Hawkins on 79 games.
Meantime, Melbourne young gun Jacob van Rooyen has been unable to have his two-game ban for striking Suns defender Charlie Ballard overturned.
Carlton’s Nic Newman was the only player to have his suspension successfully overturned during Tuesday night’s tribunal hearings.
Newman initially received a one-match ban for striking after he made contact to Lachie Neale’s chin with his elbow during the Blues’ loss to Brisbane on Friday night.
The Blues successfully challenging decision, meaning he’ll be free to take the field Saturday night against the Bulldogs.
