NATHAN Buckley has expressed surprise over Chris Masten's two-week ban for biting, labelling such an action as "clearly not acceptable" in today's game.
The West Coast midfielder was referred directly to the Tribunal on Tuesday night after being accused of biting Fremantle's Nick Suban during a spiteful Derby on Sunday afternoon.
The Eagle was ruled out for the next two games despite the club calling a dental surgeon and jaw expert to help explain the reflex they believed could have caused Masten to bite down when he felt pressure inside his mouth.
Buckley said once Masten was found guilty of offence, he would have expected the sanction handed down to be bigger than two weeks.
"It didn't sit in the Tribunal, but if you're guilty of biting you'd expect the penalty would be a little greater than that," Buckley said.
"Without all the evidence, the immediate reaction would be that it's either you're absolved or there's a greater penalty.
"As I said, that's without all the information."
After the decision was handed down, West Coast defender Will Schofield tweeted "Mark down today's date in your calendar. The players [sic] code is no more."
The tweet has since been deleted.
The ‘players' code’ is the unofficial expectation that players look after each other when it comes to disciplinary matters like Tribunal cases.
Suban, after declaring to the umpire directly after Sunday's incident that Masten had bitten him, gave evidence on Tuesday night to back up his match day claim and again said he had felt a bite on his arm.
Masten argued his mouth was wedged on Suban's left forearm and there had been no intention to bite, rather he must have "closed it by reaction".
But the Dockers provided a photo of the arm and a clear breaking of Suban's skin, as well as stating it required treatment and antibiotics.
Tribunal chat recap: Masten, Silvagni banned
Buckley said the players' reaction to incidents like Masten's was a good thing for the game.
"If a player's tweeted the players' code has been broken, it's broken, isn't it?" he said.
"Ultimately, there are things that are acceptable on the field and things that are not, and a lot of the things that have happened on the field in the past are now being seen as taboo, which I think is a great thing for us, because it's been separate of the game of footy and the competitiveness that you want your players to enter the arena with.
"We need to do what we do in a respectful manner even though it's inside a white line.
"I think that biting is clearly not acceptable, and any other potential reportable elements or disrespect that we've seen I think has been stamped on by players to players, let alone from outside of the white line."
Buckley concedes Pies have fallen short of expectations
The Magpies announced Holden as the naming rights holder to their Olympic Park headquarters on Tuesday, with the car manufacturer to replace previous holder Westpac.
Club president Eddie McGuire said the three-year multi-million dollar partnership would contribute to the Pies opening up their $100 million state-of-the-art facility and precinct to the public when it is complete.
Westpac will remain as the Magpies' banking sponsor.
