The AFL reviewed Toby Greene‘s kick to Dane Rampe‘s groin but the GWS captain has avoided being sanctioned, the league’s new footy boss said on Tuesday.
Nine’s Footy Classified showed footage on Monday of Greene kicking his heel back in the direction of Rampe’s groin ahead of the opening bounce of last Friday’s Sydney derby, which GWS won by 44 points.
The Giants superstar will miss Thursday’s clash with the Western Bulldogs having struck Isaac Heeney in the head with a forearm during the first quarter.
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Greene dropped to his knees and plunged his left forearm into the head of his business partner, who had been tackled to ground by two other GWS players.
But Greg Swann, the AFL’s new general manager of football performance, told SEN that Greene had avoided consequence for the kick because he hadn’t made contact.
Toby Greene’s kick to Dane Rampe’s groin. Nine
“It has been [reviewed]. Chrisso [Michael Christian, the match review officer] did have a look at it … and we won’t be taking any action on it, only on the basis that he actually doesn’t connect,” Swann said.
“Whether we think that’s a thing that we want in the game is a separate thing, which obviously we don’t.”
Swann described what Greene did as “a weird action”, while former Melbourne captain Garry Lyon said on SEN it was “a horrible look”.
Senior journalist Damien Barrett said on Footy Classified that the Swans had no issue with the incident involving Greene and Rampe, nor had the club brought it to the attention of the show or the AFL.
“It’s still pretty average, though,” replied Geelong great Jimmy Bartel, a former GWS board member.
“Kicking is a no-go, and then kicking to the groin region, throwing your legs back like that…
“This is the issue with Toby Greene, especially in big games. He sees the red mist even worse than most gentlemen, and it’s the problem.
“We will always hear from coaches about players like Toby [who say], ‘Ah, they play on the edge, they play on the edge’.
“But I can imagine when you look at the rap sheet … Yes, they’re all in big games, but they actually then hurt the Giants when they’re leading into bigger games.”
