Collingwood defender Brayden Maynard has learnt his fate for an umpire push as he attempted to enter a melee against Gold Coast on Saturday.
The premiership Magpie pushed umpire, Nicholas Brown, as he attempted to remonstrate with Sun Ben Long for a brutal bump from behind that left Maynard on the floor clutching his ribs.
Many defended Maynard as he was being accosted by multiple other Suns players at the time, who appeared to push him towards Brown.
And it seems the Match Review Officer agreed, Maynard handed a $5,000 while Touk Miller was also fined the same amount for pushing him towards the umpire in the incident deemed “engaging in Any Other Act of Misconduct”.
“The Match Review Officer has determined that these are not matters that constitute the Direct Tribunal Offence of “Intentional Contact with an Umpire”,” an AFL statement read on Sunday.
Further, the Match Review Officer has also determined that these are not matters that constitute the Fixed Financial Offence of “Unreasonable or Unnecessary Contact with an Umpire” or “Careless Contact with an Umpire”.
Long, however, was not so lucky, offered a two-week suspension for the hit on the Magpies defender which the MRO deemed was rough conduct.
Maynard ended up on the ground again in the ensuing melee, with his teammates also going after Long.
Maynard himself spoke post-game as Collingwood held on for a hard-fought victory at People First Stadium.
“If you’re going to come hit me cheaply, you’re going to get something back,” he told Fox Footy.
“It’s all a part of the game, I didn’t mind it really. I think I might have a broken rib, but it’s all a part of footy.”
Greater Western Sydney skipper Toby Greene was handed a six-week suspension in 2022 for deliberately touching an umpire.
Channel 7 expert Kane Cornes was squarely in Maynard’s corner.
“Team Maynard. Pathetic from Gold Coast Suns,” he wrote on X.
“Maynard, with a popped shoulder and a broken rib laid a game high nine tackles (six in the second half). Gold Coast Suns had 15 players who laid one or less. Says it all.”
