MATCH REVIEW: Hawks to contest mid’s suspension; Eagle recruit also suspended
The Match Review results are in for the AAMI Community Series games across Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Hawthorn plans to contest the one-game suspension given to midfielder Jai Newcombe, while West Coast recruit Harry Schoenberg has also received a one-game ban after the weekend’s matches.
Newcombe is set to miss Hawthorn’s Opening Round clash with Greater Western Sydney unless the club’s challenge at the AFL Tribunal succeeds. In Friday night’s game, Newcombe forced Western Bulldogs star Ed Richards’s head into the ground in the third quarter. Richards had one arm trapped by Newcombe but was not seriously injured and continued to play, finishing the match.
The Match Review Officer classified the contact as careless, with medium impact and high contact, which led to the one-game suspension. Hawthorn, however, confirmed it will appeal the decision at the AFL Tribunal on Tuesday night.
Despite the suspension, Newcombe remains eligible for the Brownlow Medal this year because the ban applies to a pre-season match rather than a regular-season contest.
For Hawthorn, losing Newcombe would be a significant setback in addition to existing absences: star Will Day (shoulder) and young midfielder Cam Mackenzie, who is sidelined with a concussion sustained in the loss to the Bulldogs.
Separately, Schoenberg faced a charge for striking Port Adelaide’s Logan Evans in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s Community Series game. The MRO labeled the incident as intentional, with medium impact and body contact, resulting in a one-game ban.
Schoenberg’s sanction marks the first application of a new 2026 Match Review change, which tends to classify strikes as medium impact and generally lead to a one-week suspension more often than in previous seasons.
“It will be graded, usually, as medium, at a minimum. ‘Usually’ means more than 50 percent. That’s a significant change … that will result in a week’s suspension,” MRO Michael Christian explained to AFL.com.au last week. (https://www.afl.com.au/news/1469052/the-big-changes-coming-to-the-afl-tribunal-this-season)
Essendon midfielder Sam Durham has been cleared regarding his potentially dangerous tackle on St Kilda’s Ryan Byrnes.
Would you side with Hawthorn’s appeal strategy or support the current rulings? Which interpretation of the new review changes do you find most reasonable, and how do you think these changes will shape team strategies this season?
