Collingwood champion Scott Pendlebury remains on track to equal Brent Harvey’s V/AFL games record on Anzac Day, after escaping a bump ban at the AFL Tribunal.
Pendlebury successfully escaped a one-match suspension after he was found to have bumped Adelaide’s Josh Worrell last Saturday night, but argued his 427 games without a suspension were exceptional and compelling circumstances.
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The Tribunal also found, while it was a bump, it was indeed careless and very much at the lower end. Pendlebury received a $3000 fine.
He is now set to play his record-setting 433rd game at the MCG in Round 8 against Hawthorn – or, if he is rested on a short turnaround after Anzac Day, a week after that at the MCG against Geelong.
Tribunal hearing
Myles Tehan represented Collingwood with Albert Dinelli representing the AFL in front of a Tribunal panel of Jeff Gleeson (chair), Darren Gaspar and David Neitz.
The Magpies argued the incident was not careless, and thus he should be found not guilty, and if that was not accepted, argued his exemplary record of 427 games counted as exceptional and compelling circumstances – known colloquially as the ‘good bloke clause’.
On the latter, the AFL only argued it was a matter for the Tribunal as to whether accept having never been suspended counted as exceptional and compelling circumstances. They effectively did not mount an argument against it.
Pendlebury explained he had never been suspended as a senior AFL player, as a junior footy player or as a basketball player.
He explained he was bracing for contact once he realised he didn’t have a play on the ball, trying to decelerate by putting his left leg out in front of his body. He felt if he didn’t act as he did, he and Worrell could have knocked each other out.
Pendlebury explained he did not know he had made contact with Worrell’s head until the next day when he was told he had been cited.
“It’s never been my intention in my career to try and injure another player,” he said.
In the moment Pendlebury was “frustrated” with the way Beau McCreery was running a “route”.
“Don’t tell Beau I said this, but he doesn’t have a left foot, he’s only got a right foot,” Pendlebury cheekily quipped.
Pendlebury argued he did not tuck his right arm in before making contact, which the AFL disagreed with, and said the incident was properly characterised as a bump.
The league also said Worrell turned towards the ball but Pendlebury stayed on his line and “leaned in”, and “that is what resulted in the bump”.
“One can still bump even if one is decelerating,” Dinelli said for the AFL.
The Magpies said the contact did not constitute a bump “in the footballing sense of that phrase” and thus under the rough conduct provisions, “it should be seen as not unreasonable conduct in the circumstances”.
“A bump usually involves some form of proactive movement by a bumping player towards an opponent,” Tehan said for the Magpies.
Tribunal chair Gleeson pointed out he put to Pendlebury it could be seen as a bump by way of a shepherd, and Pendlebury said it might’ve been the outcome but he never intended that.
The Magpies used a slideshow to prove Pendlebury was slowing down before contact, saying “a bump would involve an acceleration or at least a maintaining of speed”.
“This is about as elaborate as Collingwood’s set play,” Gleeson quipped of the slideshow.
Collingwood pointed out fellow 400 club members Brent Harvey, Shaun Burgoyne and Dustin Fletcher had been suspended for 12 games, six games and 20 games through their careers respectively, “and none of those players were in the colloquial term dirty players”.
Tribunal chair Gleeson said “I think Mr (Kevin) Bartlett would be justifiably upset if it wasn’t mentioned he played his games without a single suspension”, to which the Pies explained many fewer of his games were filmed and by fewer cameras.
Tribunal reasons
The primary issue here is whether this was a bump, whether Pendlebury braced for impact when he saw Worrell at the last moment.
We accept that Pendlebury decelerated from the time his eyes moved to Worrell but, viewing the direction and way in which Pendlebury’s body moved from that moment, we are satisfied this was a bump.
Althought the incident unfolded very quickly, and we do take into account that his left hand was in a bracing position, we are satisfied that Pendlebury had time to and did form the decision to bump as distinct from doing no more than bracing for impact.
Although Pendlebury may not have known that Worrell was McCreery’s direct opponent and may not have seen him clearly until shortly before impact, he should have known that McCreery’s opponent would inevitably have been immediately behind him as McCeery moved towards a loose ball and in the direction of Collingwood goals.
We find that he did, in fact, see him in sufficient time to make an election to bump.
He does lean slightly towards Worrell at a time when it appeared McCreery would gain possession of the ball, and it would therefore be advantageous for McCreery to have separation from Worrell.
Although there was an element of Pendlebury turning to protect himself, that will often be the case with a bump, and we find that here it was also his intention to provide some separation for McCreery.
We are not satisfied that Pendlebury was either contesting the ball or that circumstances beyond his control caused the contact with Worrell.
Turning now to the plea of exceptional and compelling circumstances.
We are comfortably satisfied that this provision applies to Scott Pendlebury.
To have played 427 games of AFL football as a midfielder, engaged in many thousands of contests over his career, and to have never been suspended is clearly exceptional when compared with the entire history of the VFL/AFL players.
This record is of itself a compelling circumstance, but we also take into account that this was a careless act, and certainly not at the high end of the careless range.
Pendlebury moved in such a way so as to reduce the force of the impact, rather than to increase the impact.
It did not cause injury, and it was very much an in-play incident.
Originally published as ‘Never banned playing hoops’: Scott Pendlebury escapes ban thanks to clean 427-game reocrd
