ALBURY spearhead Josh Mellington has been handed a seven-match ban after being found guilty of charging Lavington defender Will Lenehan.
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The match review panel cited the Tigers star after reviewing footage from the grand final.
Mellington took a risky approach, pleading not guilty despite a four-match suspended sentence stemming from the Goulburn Valley League last year hanging over his head.
The Doug Strang medallist said it wasn't a deliberate act to bump Lenehan.
“I decided to go to make a contest with Will, but when I saw that he hadn't marked the ball I decided to brace for impact,” he said.
“I attacked the ball the way I was taught to as a full-forward.
“I disagree with the notion that it was a deliberate act, if it was I wouldn't have had my hands up coming into the contest.”
The tribunal heard Lenehan suffered a concussion as a result of the incident, with the Panthers defender unable to recall certain key moments of the game.
Despite Mellington arguing that the slippery conditions were another mitigating factor in the collision, the tribunal found otherwise after a short time deliberating.
“Under these circumstances, the amount of force used (in the bump) was unnecessary,” tribunal chairman Wayne Taylor said.
“We find the charge to be proven.”
There looked to be a twist in the tale when Mellington's prior tribunal records showed he hadn't actually served a penalty to go with his GV league striking charge last year, something out of the ordinary according to AFL Vic Country rules.
However, the tribunal's hands were tied, invoking the suspended four-match penalty in addition to imposing their own three-game sanction.