This week was a fairly busy week for AFL Match Review Officer Michael Christian. In total, thirteen incidents were closely reviewed, with two of these resulting in suspensions, one being dismissed and the remaining ten incurring financial sanctions.
Let's have a closer look at these fines shall we?
Tom Jonas, Port Adelaide - $1500 for misconduct
Sam Frost, Melbourne - $2000 for rough conduct
Scott Thompson, North Melbourne - $2000 for striking
Mitch Crowden, Fremantle -$2000 for rough conduct
Bailey Banfield, Fremantle - $1000 for making contact with an injured player
Aaron Sandilands, Fremantle - $2000 for rough conduct
Dylan Grimes, Richmond - $1000 for engaging in a melee
Cyril Rioli, Hawthorn - $1000 for engaging in a melee
Nick Vlastuin, Richmond - $2000 for rough conduct
Alex Rance, Richmond - $2000 striking
On the surface, there's nothing too far wrong with that list. It all seems fairly consistent, that is until you run down the list of names.
Fremantle's Mitch Crowden is a first year player, taken in the fourth round of the 2017 (Pick 59) and by no means a household name. It's fair to assume he would be likely to be on the minimum contract for drafted players.
Mitch Crowden
At the other end of the scale, we have Alex Rance. Premiership Player and arguably one of the best defenders in the game. In Richmond circles, he is talked about in the same breath as Dustin Martin, Trent Cotchin and Jack Riewoldt in terms of his value to the club, and as such, we can assume his most recent contract negotiations would have been fairly substantial.
Alex Rance
Both of these men received fines of $2000. Who is that going to hit harder? The first year player, or the experienced star earning a six-figure income a year? That kind of fine is a drop in the ocean to Rance, and hardly figures as a deterrent against future incidents.
Perhaps it's time for the AFL to have a look at the model used by the ICC (International Cricket Council) when issuing fines for player indiscretions. These fines are reported as a percentage of their match fee, which means that highly paid stars of the game, are fined a higher amount than players from countries where cricketers are not paid as generously. Surely this makes more sense.
I'd love to read your thoughts on this.....