THE BROWNLOW Medal has not been compromised by the AFL's crackdown on punching, according to football operations boss Simon Lethlean, with players given enough notice on the League's new expectations.
While Richmond captain Trent Cotchin remains eligible for the Brownlow Medal after he was fined $1000 for a jumper punch on Fremantle's Lachie Neale in round eight, Geelong forward Tom Hawkins has been ruled out because of a similar incident.
Hawkins was the first victim of the crackdown after the AFL ordered its Match Review Panel to take a harsher view on jumper and gut punches after falling out of line with community expectations.
Lethlean said players were aware of the League's expectations ahead of every round and a change in interpretation mid-season did not diminish the integrity of the game's most prestigious individual award.
"I know some have spoken about it this week, but my view on that is players took the field in every match this year understanding our expectations if they'd moved," Lethlean told 3AW.
"We were pretty clear that punching is likely to draw a sanction if the impact is intentional and high and there's enough force.
"I think the integrity of the Brownlow is firmly intact.
"(We) made statement to all clubs and players, who were all spoken to and understood entirely our position … so if a player transgressed thereafter they'd know they'd gone foul of our expectations."
Cotchin's $1000 fine highlighted the AFL's penalties for punching were not aligned with community expectations, with North Melbourne's Ben Cunnington fined the following week for a gut punch on Melbourne's Bernie Vince.
The League communicated its new expectations to all club football departments ahead of round 10, with Hawkins paying the price with a one-match suspension for a jumper punch on Adelaide's Matt Crouch.
Lethlean said he was confident the stricter interpretation, which could lead to more suspensions in the second half of the season, was appropriate for both an elite competition and the community.
"Expectations have shifted across the years in relation to the elite game and the role we play in setting the example for the community, not just in football but in ways of life sometimes," he said.
"We try not to be influenced such that it's detrimental to our elite game, but I don't think it's appropriate for certain behaviours to be broadcast to millions of people and especially for pathways of junior footballers we want in our game.
"To be frank, I don't think we could keep putting up with the behaviours that were being exhibited.
"You don't want players missing matches for very innocuous incidents, but I don't think punching is seen as innocuous these days."
