Tweet
Lions appeal against Brown ban
Bruce Matthews
19may04
BRISBANE Lions forward Jonathan Brown must endure a disruptive week whatever the outcome of an early appeal hearing today.
The powerhouse Lion will challenge a two-match suspension only 24 hours after the AFL Tribunal last night outed him for striking Carlton's Darren Hulme.
He remained in Melbourne last night with football manager Graeme Allan to prepare to return to the same tribunal room at Southbank tonight.
But this time he will plead his case before a different three-man panel on the AFL Appeals Board after a hearing involving teammate Jamie Charman.
Charman must fly south too after being cited for striking Blues ruckman Adrian Deluca following a recommendation by AFL investigations officer Rick Lewis yesterday.
He will fight the charge tonight before the tribunal panel vacates the room to allow the appeals board to adjudicate on the Brown case.
If Brown's suspension is overturned and Charman beats the striking charge, the pair are expected to remain in Melbourne and fly direct to Perth to meet up with the team for Saturday's game against Fremantle at Subiaco.
Brown's two-match penalty last night further weakened a Lions' attack already missing Alastair Lynch and it came only six games after he served a similar ban for striking in last year's Grand Final triumph.
Chairman Brian Collis QC said the tribunal had noted the short time between the offences and added it was "a difficult matter for us".
Brown found himself in trouble again when he reacted to a Hulme bump near the boundary line in the last quarter at the Gabba on Saturday night.
The triple premiership forward told the tribunal he merely delivered a "square-up bump" to let Hulme know he was still standing.
"I turned and bumped him with the shoulder. I dropped the knees to make sure I made no contact to his head," Brown said.
"It was a solid enough bump without being harsh. It was certainly not a very forceful action. It's clear on the video I turned the arm around and it's limp. The only intention was to use the shoulder."
Hulme told the hearing he was off-balance after bumping Brown and didn't feel any contact to the head.
Collis said the tribunal found that Brown's inner arm made forceful contact to Hulme's shoulder-neck area.
"It was unnecessary, reckless and constitutes striking . . . play had stopped and it was an unnecessary action," he said.
Comment