Melbourne appeal AFL tribunal's three-match ban of veteran defender Steven May
May was found guilty of rough conduct for a collision that concussed Francis Evans and left the Carlton forward with a broken nose and a chipped tooth.
The tribunal ultimately found that May did not fulfill effectively his duty of care to the extent that 'a reasonable player' would under specific circumstances.
But the decision has divided the AFL world, and former greats and expert Channel 7 commentators Nick Riewoldt and Matthew Richardson expressed their disbelief in the verdict on Thursday morning.
Riewoldt, in particular was shocked the use of the words 'reasonable player'.
'I want to meet this reasonable player,' Riewoldt said on Triple M.
'I can't wait to meet him. Who is he? Who is this reasonable player? Superman, part Superman, part Flash, can bend time, can do all of these things.
'Unbelievable decision from the AFL tribunal last night to suspend Steven. May.
'I really thought that common sense was going to prevail.'
Riewoldt said he thought the case would be similar to that of Fremantle captain Alex Pearce, whose three-match ban for concussing Port Adelaide's Darcy Byrne-Jones in May was overturned at the tribunal.
Pearce was cleared after Fremantle successfully argued that he was contesting the ball. Pearce also declared at the time 'it would not sit well with me if I pulled out of that contest'.
'We had one earlier in the year with Alex Pearce, where I thought 'good', they're not trying to jam every incident into their own framework, into their own narrative, that every head knock and subsequent concussion is a breach of duty of care,' Riewoldt said.
'There are going to be accidents. It's a contact sport, and I thought this one would fit that mould perfectly, and yet, here we are, Steven May being suspended for three weeks.
'There has to be an appeal.'
Richmond legend Matthew Richardson agreed.
'I didn't like it,' Richardson said on Channel 7's Sunrise.
'I thought, right from the start Steven May was contesting the ball. They arrive pretty much at the same time. I mean, there's a 10th of a second in it.
'I think Steven May tried to win the footy. It was an accidental collision. And it's a big ruling for the AFL and the game, in my belief.
'I mean, basically it looks like to me that if you concuss someone, no matter how accidental it is, you're going to get rubbed out.
'I think they just need to be transparent, the AFL, and come out and say that.
'I think Melbourne and Steven May, they've got to appeal this, because all the people I speak to, past players, no one has agreed with that decision so far.'
Melbourne revealed they were appealing the decision on Thursday afternoon.
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