Michael Christian

So I think there might be a couple of players that have been found guilty twice.

But to be honest, I don't even know who they are.

And it's not relevant for me because I'd rather not know.

It's a question of identifying an incident and determining whether a player makes careless contact with an umpire.

No.

Well, look, I heard Damien Harwick say that, and it was after the fact, so I wonder whether before the fact he would have had the same comment.

But, look, there were a couple of incidents that in themselves didn't, in my opinion, warrant a week's suspension.

And I haven't got the capacity to accumulate a number of incidents with one game and say, well, you've done 10 things wrong, therefore it's a week.

Each incident is identified or assessed on its own merit.

And so there are a couple of incidents there that deserve to find, but no particular action for Ben Long in that incident warranted a week in our opinion.

Yeah, look, I haven't seen that for a long, long, long time, and certainly not in my time, and that's going on a few years now.

So, yeah, look, it was sent to the tribunal, and I think that was the fairest way to assess it.

Tristan could put his case forward.

The AFL could put their case forward, and I think the appropriate penalty was a result of...

of everyone having their opportunity to speak at a tribunal setting, which I think was appropriate.

Yeah, look, it was a very interesting case and obviously dragged on and on.

Greg Swan spoke to both parties, both the Port Adelaide and also the umpire involved, Nick Foote.

to try and determine whether there might be some sort of mediation that could avert a tribunal hearing but both both the club both port adelaide zach butters and nick foot were were steadfast in what was said and obviously they had differing views on in terms of what was said so in in a general assessment uh given the situation and given that nick foot had reported zach butters

then it wasn't in the scope for the parties to get together for mediation.

So the fairest way at the time was determined that it should be a tribunal hearing to let both parties put their cases forward and then the tribunal make a decision based on that.