AFL Round 20, 2018

[westdog54]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

The kid couldn't remove his mouthguard due to the trauma. You know that I'm not exactly a "lock 'em up and throw away the key" type guy but after that Gaff shouldn't be breathing free air.

BTW does the complaint have to come from the victim? Couldn't one of the 50 000 witnesses report a crime?

Report, yes. But a prosecution isn't going anywhere without the victim's participation.

[The Underdog]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

It’s tough to understand how Gaff could do something like that 3 weeks out from finals and going into free agency. I’d be astounded if he gets away with less than 6 weeks. Stupid, selfish and tough to comprehend.

[bulldogtragic]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

I'd make the report to the police if I was him. There's weak as piss acts, and then there's c*** acts deserving of police involvement. Having your teeth knocked out isn't within the bounds of consent or self defence of AFL.

Then the Eagles fans who booed Adam Goodes, now the same ones cheering him off... your mindless *!*!*!*!wits.

The AFEL apparently want to stop parents sending their kids to soccer and not Aussie rules, then use your powers to make an example of this behaviour. This is bygone era violence that belongs in a bygone era, but if they sit quietly on the sidelines than they can shut the *!*!*!*! up about participation rates of kids skyrocketing in soccer.

[ledge]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

And now gaff goes back to the club and will have to confront Brayshaws brother ( who plays at Eagles ) and tell him what he did . Puts the poor younger brother in an awkward situation.
Eagles fans astounding that they applauded him.
Eagles players obviously knew gaff was in big trouble the way they got around him after his goal.
Can't believe Simpson didn't get him off the ground ASAP after the incident, the freo team was a Monty to get him back somehow and they did.
Gaff will wear this one in footy thuggery outlaw acts for the rest of time.
The interviews afterwards tells you he is already in defence mode, not sure anything he does will excuse the act.

[The bulldog tragician]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

I am NOT astounded at the Eagles cheering him as they have demonstrated themselves to be morons time and again.

[westdog54]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

The kid couldn't remove his mouthguard due to the trauma. You know that I'm not exactly a "lock 'em up and throw away the key" type guy but after that Gaff shouldn't be breathing free air.

BTW does the complaint have to come from the victim? Couldn't one of the 50 000 witnesses report a crime?

The latest indicates that Brayshaw won't be eating solids for a month after surgery.

That changes the legal situation significantly.

In saying that, given the offence occurred in WA I cant speak to what their criminal code says.

[bulldogtragic]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

The latest indicates that Brayshaw won't be eating solids for a month after surgery.

That changes the legal situation significantly.

In saying that, given the offence occurred in WA I cant speak to what their criminal code says.

Gil should personally walk Brayshaw into his local police station to make a report. No doubt about that kind of statement from both of them. He should front a Magistrate in my opinion, not just a tribunal with those injuries. If that happened in the crowd, that's what would happen.

[Twodogs]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

I wonder why Gaff did it? Had there been some previous trouble or was Brayshaw going with a particularly hard tag job on Gaff. I wasn't watching the game so I haven't any context.

[Ozza]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

Gil should personally walk Brayshaw into his local police station to make a report. No doubt about that kind of statement from both of them. He should front a Magistrate in my opinion, not just a tribunal with those injuries. If that happened in the crowd, that's what would happen.

But it didn’t happen in the crowd, it happened on the field.

I know that it shouldn’t happen regardless, but I think when you walk onto a footy field, you accept some things that are either not acceptable or are different to what should or could happen on the street. It is a combative and aggressive environment, and it is a hell of a slippery slope if police are getting involved in incidents that happen on a professional football field.

[Happy Days]

Re: AFL Round 20, 2018

But it didn’t happen in the crowd, it happened on the field.

I know that it shouldn’t happen regardless, but I think when you walk onto a footy field, you accept some things that are either not acceptable or are different to what should or could happen on the street. It is a combative and aggressive environment, and it is a hell of a slippery slope if police are getting involved in incidents that happen on a professional football field.

It's a pretty messed up area of law - hasn't really been analysed too deeply in Australia and English law has come to a settled position of targeting actions which are "sufficiently grave as to attract criminal sanction" which, well, of course should be prosecuted. But on the other hand there's clearly scope for criminal prosecutions to be sought for on-field actions; there's a clear demarcation between what is acceptable and foreseeable in a sporting contest and what Gaff did that will preclude any "slippery slope" from forming, as evidenced by the reaction and this conversation we're having right now.

What I'm trying to say is that the scope to pursue acts has been shown to be possible by heeding to "sporting consent", a concept that too has been proven capable of being enshrined in law. What it takes is actually punishing offenders that step beyond sporting consent, rather than allowing them to hide behind it.

I think there's an inherent tendency to forgive these actions because they're situations that many of us, as former amateur sportspeople, readily see ourselves in, which is really unfortunate because it all too easily forgives reprehensible behaviour that really should attract harsher punishment that the AFL can allow for.