Fremantle forward Patrick Voss will pay a price for taunting Melbourne’s Harrison Petty after the AFL charged him with misconduct for taunting Melbourne’s Harrison Petty.
The AFL fined Voss $1500 for mocking the defender when he rubbed his hair and then rubbed his eyes as though he was crying on the quarter time siren.
The crying reference was related to an incident in 2022 when Petty became emotional after Lions’ skipper Dayne Zorko sledged him about his mother who was sick.
The AFL does not have a taunting rule but the MRO determined that Voss’s action was unsportsmanlike and unacceptable.
They came to the view that Voss’s unnecessary actions could have led to retaliation. The league is also keen to set an example to community and junior leagues and hope the fine will deter players from such public sledging.
Voss’s action was widely condemned for his act on Sunday however Dockers’ coach Justin Longmuir defended the player post-game. “He does a lot right in that sense. We understand he treads a fine line at times, and he’s got to manage that,” Longmuir said.
SEN commentator Kane Cornes said it was a difficult decision for the AFL but expressed concern about the precedent being set.
“How can you fine someone for doing a crying motion? Like, he hasn’t said anything… it’s a slippery slope,” Cornes said.
Fox Footy’s David King said post-game the AFL should act to stamp out such incidents if possible. “I’m not sure whether there’s anything in the rules you could sanction the player, but it’s a worthy discussion because in the end it’s an ugly part of our game we don’t need,” King said.
Voss has become a cult figure at the Dockers with his exuberant celebrations after kicking a goal. He kicked 37 goals last season. On Saturday, he also picked up Melbourne wingman Ed Langdon in a tackle and walked toward the fence with the Demon on his shoulders.
In other MRO findings, Gold Coast forward Bailey Humphrey was offered a two-game ban for rough conduct following his sling tackle on Richmond’s Maurice Rioli at the MCG on Saturday afternoon. The action was graded careless conduct, high-impact and high contact.
Giants’ skipper Toby Green was also fined for striking St Kilda’s Marcus Windhager during their narrow loss at Engie Stadium. Greene made public on the eve of the season his commitment to not be suspended this season.
