Fremantle young gun Matthew Johnson has been hit with a two-game ban for a dangerous tackle that saw Lions star Dayne Zorko slammed into the turf on Saturday.
Johnson attempted to tackle Zorko on the wing of the Gabba during the Dockers’ clash with Brisbane, only for his tackle to slip high.
But as the umpire blew the whistle for a free kick against Johnson, the young Docker tackled Zorko to the ground head-first in a dangerous motion.
Watch every match of every round of the 2023 Toyota AFL Premiership Season LIVE on Kayo Sports. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Zorko was able to get to his feet and shoot at goal following a 50m penalty.
On Sunday, the Match Review determined Johnson’s conduct was careless, high impact and high contact.
As a result, he was hit with a two-match ban.
“That’s an absolute no-no,” dual premiership Kangaroo David King said of Johnson’s tackle on Fox Footy.
“That is the one action we’re trying to stamp out of the game and I don’t think Johnson has read the memo or been watching too much footy the last couple of weeks.”
Lions legend Jonathan Brown said Johnson should be preparing to spend some time on the sidelines.
“Unfortunately for Matthew Johnson, Zorko kicked the footy, so he’s on one leg and he’s going to tip over a more easily than if he was on two feet,” Brown told Fox Footy.
“But you can’t do that, the AFL doesn’t like that tackle and he’ll spend some time on the sidelines.”
West Coast’s Sam Petrevski-Seton was also hit with a rough conduct ban for his tackle on Blues Alex Cincotta in Saturday night’s clash.
Petrevski-Seton’s hit was assessed as careless, medium impact and high contact.
He’ll miss one match at a time when the Eagles’ fit and available playing stocks are already decimated.
