Ballantyne takes two-week ban
Fremantle goalsneak Hayden Ballantyne will miss the next two weeks of AFL after it was confirmed by coach Ross Lyon he would not appeal a careless contact charge.
The 27-year-old clipped Geelong defender Harry Taylor’s head in Fremantle’s 44-point win over the Cats on Sunday, the charge deemed to be medium impact.
Had Ballantyne contested the charge and been unsuccessful he would have received a three-match ban because of his poor disciplinary record in recent seasons.
Lyon told Perth radio station 6PR the club would accept the two weeks.
“No, there’ll be no appeal,” Lyon said.
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“It’s two weeks, that’ll go by pretty quick. It was a split second decision. It all happened really quickly. At the end of the day we’d prefer Hayden playing than not playing but someone else gets an opportunity.”
Known for his on-field aggression and at times labelled a ‘pest’ by opposition players, Ballantyne has a knack of getting under his opponents’ skin.
So much so that when he was punched in the face by Geelong defender Matthew Scarlett in 2012 other AFL players tweeted their support of Scarlett.
Gold Coast’s Trent Mckenzie the most notable when he tweeted: “Matthew Scarlett did a favour for most people #lethimoff”.
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Lyon said he would do little to change Ballantyne’s nature on the field, even it did result in the occasional ban.
“I love the way Hayden plays,” Lyon said.
“But they haven’t made a perfect player yet. We all try and improve our decision-making. I’m fully supportive of Hayden.”
The only other players facing suspension after round two are Gold Coast’s Alex Sexton and Geelong midfielder Billie Smedts.
If Sexton and Smedts log early guilty pleas they will walk away with one-week bans.
Smedts was reported for striking Lee Spurr on Sunday, while Sexton was charged by the match review panel for striking Jack Lonie in the Suns’ 28-point loss to St Kilda.
Incidents involving Collingwood young gun Taylor Adams and Port Adelaide’s Jackson Trengove were looked at, but both men were cleared.
North Melbourne veteran Michael Firrito, Geelong’s Mitch Duncan and Sun Stephen May can accept $1000 fines after being charged with striking, tripping and rough conduct respectively.
