Hit proves no miss for Hawks defender
HAWTHORN defender Josh Gibson is free to play against Geelong in the qualifying final after he was cleared by the match review panel of his high hit on Collingwood’s Levi Greenwood.
Gibson caught Greenwood high in the second quarter of Sunday’s thrilling one-point win by the Hawks, but the MRP found it was a genuine attempt to spoil and worthy of only a free kick against the influential backman.
The panel offered only one player a suspension from Round 23. Brisbane defender Daniel Merrett was slapped with a two-match ban for striking St Kilda’s Shane Savage.
Merrett made sure he finished his career with a bang when he was charged with striking Savage in the last quarter of his 200th and final AFL game.
The 24-year-old can accept a $1000 fine after the incident was assessed as careless conduct with medium impact to the body.
Meanwhile, Hawthorn took its quest to win a historic fourth-straight premiership to the VFL reserves.
The Hawks qualified AFL premiership forward Matt Spangher for VFL development league finals by playing him at the lower grade for about four minutes on Saturday. Spangher, 29, was named in the 11am development league match and spent just a few minutes on the ground at Casey Fields before returning to play a full game for Box Hill seniors.