Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge doesn’t expect match review officer Michael Christian to take any action against North Melbourne’s Jackson Archer over a sickening collision that knocked out young defender Luke Cleary.
In the fourth quarter of Saturday night’s game, won 17.11 (113) to 14.13 (97) by the Bulldogs, Cleary was getting down low to pick up the ball, with Jacob Konstanty attempting to tackle him from behind.
Archer, 22, flung himself forward to attack the contest and went over Cleary from the front, collecting him in the head with his knee.
Cleary, 23, was knocked out and play was stopped as he received medical attention before being taken off on a stretcher.
He was later taken to hospital as a precaution and Beveridge said the Bulldogs medical staff were “optimistic” Cleary was going to be OK as he was responsive on the ground.
“From the box, it almost looked like, remember, we used to watch Happy Days … you can’t make light of this, but you remember the Malachi brothers, the ‘Malachi Crunch’?” Beveridge said.
“From where I was, it just looked like just a bad crash, and players went hard and Luke’s come off second best.”
The ‘Malachi Crunch’ involved two demolition derby cars crashing into an opponent simultaneously.
When asked if he expected the match review officer to look at the incident, Beveridge said: “I wouldn’t have thought so.
“That’s why it looked like a bad crash, because it was two or three players there – they were all North Melbourne players weren’t they, other than Luke.
“And I, at that point in time, didn’t know he copped one in the head.
“But sometimes when the player’s running that fast for the ball, the slide under rule’s there as well. So you don’t know which way it’s going to go.
“I haven’t slowed it down, but I imagine it’s going to be OK.”
North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson said: “I haven’t looked at a replay of it but just an unfortunate collision in the game. I hope the young fella’s okay.
“I didn’t know what the free kick was gonna be – was it gonna be for too high or was it gonna be for taking the legs out of the opposition?
“And unfortunately the young fella’s been injured but I hope he comes out of it OK.”
Clarkson was uncertain how the MRO would assess the incident, but noted it was their duty to look at collisions that forced players from the field.
When asked if there was anything Archer could have done to mitigate the contact, Clarkson said: “I don’t really know the answer to that.
“They’re both young players just trying to make their way in the game. So there’s no malice in it whatsoever.
“One is coming in hard to compete and the other guy’s going in low … if you decide to go in low, it better not be that you take the legs of the opposition.
“If you stay upright though, in terms of Arch coming in, then you run the risk of someone low and hitting them in the head, with your legs or whatever.
“So it’s a really, really difficult one.”
© AAP
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