Speaking from his home-state Perth, Haines says he received enough information to deem Daw ‘unfit to fight’ after the North rookie had his wisdom teeth removed on Monday.
“My understanding is that Majak is not in a great place right now having four of his teeth removed. It would be negligent and irresponsible of me to not call the fight off until after the Christmas break,” Haines said.
“Majak is very disappointed as you can understand, but it’s important for him to nurse his wounds and get back into football training on January 4th. He can’t be worried about Daniel Pratt and his sledging.”
Haines was accused of showing bias in the first bout between the pair in Utah, with Pratt suggesting the fight was rigged. The experienced defender was at a loss to explain why Haines was so quick to award Daw the fight, he even went on to suggest money had exchanged hands.
“I know Daniel was upset,” Haines said in response to the claims. “But to accuse me of cheating goes against everything I stand for. Was it also my fault that he was the first player to get pinged for the rushed behind rule? I mean c’mon, let’s get real. There was no way Majak was going to let Daniel out of that hold and I had a genuine concern for his safety. I had to call the fight then and there and I stand by my decision.”
Haines says the fight will be rescheduled and had some advice for Pratt.
“He should worry about beating Majak and focus less on the referee. He has a lot of ground to make up judging by that first fight…I think the term ‘rag-dolled’ was aptly used in the wash-up.”
kangaroos.com.au will continue to follow this developing story.
