GOLD Coast co-captain Steven May is free to play in Shanghai against Port Adelaide after being found not guilty of intentional umpire contact at the Tribunal on Monday evening.
May was fined $1000 after not contesting the lesser charge of making careless contact with umpire David Harris during the second quarter of Gold Coast's loss to Melbourne at the Gabba last Saturday night.
The defender will now be on board when the Suns fly to China on Tuesday morning in preparation for Saturday's game against the Power.
Tribunal jury members Wayne Henwood, Jason Johnson and Stewart Loewe took 13 minutes to deliberate before announcing their verdict following a hearing that lasted less than half an hour.
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May gave evidence by video link from the Gold Coast, saying that at no time had he intended to touch Harris.
The defender said he was talking to Harris shortly before the incident to dispute a free kick paid against him.
May conceded he was "really frustrated" at the time, believing a Melbourne player had "barreled" into him, and went to demonstrate what had happened to Harris.
May said he didn't realise he had made contact with Harris until he was walking off the ground at half-time and saw the incident on the Gabba's video screen.
The Gold Coast defender's advocate, Stephen Russell, told the Tribunal Harris had not said anything to May at the time about being touched and had no recollection of the incident.
The AFL's legal counsel, Jeff Gleeson QC conceded May's action had not been abusive, hostile or aggressive, but argued Harris had been "essentially immobile" at the time of the incident and May had touched him intentionally to demonstrate what had been done to him.
Gleeson also said May touched the umpire with sufficient force to make him take a small backward step.
"It's not a brushing," Gleeson said.
Carlton football manager Andrew McKay and board member Marcus Clarke were interested onlookers at Monday's hearing as they prepare for the separate charges of intentional umpire contact against Ed and Charlie Curnow, which will be heard by the Tribunal on Tuesday night.
Geelong spearhead Tom Hawkins was suspended for one match last week on the same charge.
