Green light for Greene?

Giants star could avoid ban despite dump tackle on Sun

Footy’s most suspended current player Toby Greene could still be free to play against St Kilda despite a dump tackle on Mac Andrew that saw the Suns player’s head hit the Mt Barker turf.

Greene has been found guilty 22 times across his career for a total of 14 weeks suspension and $29,350 in fines given his penchant for pushing the boundaries of the AFL’s rules. He was the five-goal hero of the Giants victory over Gold Coast and his absence against St Kilda at Giants Stadium on Saturday would be a major boost for Ross Lyon’s side after their narrow win over Richmond.

But while tackles like the Greene incident were part of the AFL’s dumping tackle crackdown early last year as 17 players were suspended without a tribunal overturning one, the MRO did soften its stance after a pair of precedents. Rory Laird and Adam Cerra were able to have their suspensions overturned in late May last season.

Tribunal chairman Jeff Gleeson said in overturning Cerra’s suspension for a tackle on Tom Hickey that “Cerra only has a light grip on Hickey’s arms. They are not truly pinned. Hickey could use one or both of his arms.”

In the Laird tackle, Brisbane star Lachie Neale’s arms were not pinned and the tribunal ruled he did not truly dump his opponent.

In Greene’s tackle on Andrew he pinned the left arm but the Suns breakout star was able to free his right arm and buffer his fall.

While his head hit the ground, the MRO could rule that not pinning both arms gives them enough wiggle room to only fine him or declare no charge.

Richmond’s Nick Vlastuin will also come under match review heat for his tackle on St Kilda’s Dan Butler given the way he spun him in a 360 degree motion.

He had his right arm pinned and seemed to tip him as he rotated him, but did not ram his head into the ground with a forceful motion.

MRO boss Michael Christian will have to decide whether Butler’s freed arm helps Vlastuin’s case in the same manner as Greene on Andrew.