AFL hands out record suspension to Steven Baker - Page 2

JC · 29-06-2010, 10:38 PM

It's what I call the WRRE (western ring road effect) - don't take any action at the time, but look at how many indescretions were committed after the event has finished, and then book the transgresser for the same offence multiple times. Had he been free kicked the first time, I doubt the other 3 times would have occurred, just like on the Western ring road - if you got pulled over for speeding the first time, you would not be speeding past subsequent cameras etc (unless you were a complete idiot).

gtxb67 · 30-06-2010, 08:10 AM

i think the result is great - as long as they are consistent. with the recent barry hall situation and now this at least someone in the afl is trying to right wrongs
whether he should have hit his hand or not is debatable. certainly i would not blame johnson for never talking to baker again, but if you are on the field, then you are fit. in the 97 prelim, the crows targeted jose romero's shoulder, but no one cared. people only seem to care when it is their player or a perceived poster boy. i did not like the adelaide crows guys for that situation, but what did they do wrong - nothing. a player can feign an injury so the opposition take it easy on him. if baker hit johnson's other hand, then it wouldn't have mattered? so johnson can pretend his other hand was injured and bingo - no more harrassment
to me the whole baker crap and even thompson against hall (and many others) all have one very potential outcome - the guy playing the ball can get suspended for being human. that part is totally wrong and the umpires should do something to stop it escalating into what both incidents became