Bartel wasn’t risking a suspension by fighting the level one tripping offence against Western Bulldog Shaun Higgins – nor was his eligibility for this year’s Brownlow Medal at stake – but the Cats sought to erase any demerit points from Bartel’s record.
However they were unsuccessful, with the three-man jury taking less than five minutes to find the 2007 Brownlow Medal winner guilty of negligently tripping Higgins during the second term of Friday night’s clash at Docklands.
As a result Bartel received 88 demerit points to his future record – close to the 100 points required to receive a one-match suspension – meaning he will be treading a fine line for the remainder of the season.
The AFL’s match review panel had originally offered the Cat a reprimand and 66 demerit points with an early guilty plea.
Geelong football manager Neil Balme attended the hearing, at which Peter Murdoch, QC, told the tribunal that Bartel’s trip had not been negligent but accidental.
“He feels he’s been charged unjustifiably,” Murdoch said.
Tribunal chairman John Hassett and the jury watched several replays of the incident, with Bartel also giving evidence.
He said he was embarrassed as he watched clip after clip of Higgins sidestepping him.
“I tried to stop initially … I couldn’t stop my momentum,” Bartel said.
While Bartel’s legal team argued the Cat had kept his eyes on the ball and Higgins after the Bulldog evaded the Geelong star, AFL Legal Counsel Jeff Gleeson said it was Bartel’s duty to avoid contact.
“It is conceded that it happened very quickly … [but] he left his foot in the path of the Bulldogs player for longer than he should have,” Gleeson said.
Earlier in the day, Bartel’s teammate Mathew Stokes accepted a one-match suspension for striking Western Bulldog Liam Picken and Essendon’s Nathan Lovett-Murray accepted a three-match ban for engaging in rough conduct with Richmond’s Kayne Pettifer on Saturday night.
Both will miss the Essendon-Geelong clash on Sunday
“It's disappointing because Nathan has been in really good touch,” Essendon coach Matthew Knights said.
“Both offensively and defensively he has been providing us with a fair bit of impetus. He is going to be big loss for us.”
