Updated May 22, 2012 19:01:47
The AFL tribunal has upheld Leroy Jetta's one-game suspension after finding him guilty of striking.
The three-man jury only needed one minute of deliberation on Tuesday to dole out some more bad news for Jetta, who the day before suffered the embarrassment of becoming the first AFL player to be charged with staging.
Jetta received no more than a written reprimand for the staging incident because it was his first offence and the Bombers decided against challenging that charge as well.
"Clearly there have been a lot worse examples (of staging) in recent weeks," Essendon football manager Paul Hamilton said.
"From our point of view, we weren't going to fight a charge like that.
"The AFL have to make a stand at some stage, so we understand that - that's why we haven't appealed it."
Footage of the incident that led to Jetta's suspension showed Richmond defender Dylan Grimes doubling over and dropped to the ground after the Bombers small forward made contact with his midriff.
Asked after the hearing if he thought Grimes could also have been booked for staging, Hamilton laughed and replied: "I'd better not get into that whole staging debate."
Essendon argued the contact was negligible rather than low and Jetta said in his evidence that it was "very minimal".
"I thought there wasn't any force at all and I was surprised with how he (Grimes) reacted to it," Jetta said.
In summing up, Essendon advocate Dermot Dann said the tribunal should be "very careful" about what weight it put on Grimes' reaction to the blow.
But the extremely quick deliberation indicated the jury had no doubt at all about Jetta's guilt.
"He (Jetta) is disappointed because he thought it was really on the minor end of the scales," Hamilton said.
"At no stage has he denied that contact was made, that wasn't the point.
"He just thought it was negligible, but the jury were clearly of the opposite opinion."
Essendon could not reduce the one-match ban to a reprimand with an early plea, so there was no risk in taking the case to the tribunal.
AAPThe AFL tribunal has upheld Leroy Jetta's one-game suspension after finding him guilty of striking.
The three-man jury only needed one minute of deliberation on Tuesday to dole out some more bad news for Jetta, who the day before suffered the embarrassment of becoming the first AFL player to be charged with staging.
Jetta received no more than a written reprimand for the staging incident because it was his first offence and the Bombers decided against challenging that charge as well.
"Clearly there have been a lot worse examples (of staging) in recent weeks," Essendon football manager Paul Hamilton said.
"From our point of view, we weren't going to fight a charge like that.
"The AFL have to make a stand at some stage, so we understand that - that's why we haven't appealed it."
Footage of the incident that led to Jetta's suspension showed Richmond defender Dylan Grimes doubling over and dropped to the ground after the Bombers small forward made contact with his midriff.
Asked after the hearing if he thought Grimes could also have been booked for staging, Hamilton laughed and replied: "I'd better not get into that whole staging debate."
Essendon argued the contact was negligible rather than low and Jetta said in his evidence that it was "very minimal".
"I thought there wasn't any force at all and I was surprised with how he (Grimes) reacted to it," Jetta said.
In summing up, Essendon advocate Dermot Dann said the tribunal should be "very careful" about what weight it put on Grimes' reaction to the blow.
But the extremely quick deliberation indicated the jury had no doubt at all about Jetta's guilt.
"He (Jetta) is disappointed because he thought it was really on the minor end of the scales," Hamilton said.
"At no stage has he denied that contact was made, that wasn't the point.
"He just thought it was negligible, but the jury were clearly of the opposite opinion."
Essendon could not reduce the one-match ban to a reprimand with an early plea, so there was no risk in taking the case to the tribunal.
AAP
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vic First posted May 22, 2012 18:35:33
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