Geelong superstar Patrick Dangerfield has escaped with a fine over an off-the-ball incident in his side's loss to GWS on Saturday.
Dangerfield caught his tagger Matt de Boer with an elbow to the stomach, with the action graded as intentional conduct with low impact to the body.
The Cats ball-magnet missed de Boer's head with a swinging arm in the same motion, but that action went without sanction.
THE INCIDENT: Dangerfield's off-the-ball elbow could seal a date with Tribunal
After the game, Geelong coach Chris Scott dismissed the incident, saying an umpire was nearby and no free kick was paid.
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Dangerfield was hit with a $2000 fine, with match review officer Michael Christian saying there was "insufficient force to constitute offence".
The fine means Dangerfield will still be eligible to chase a second Brownlow Medal this season, and can feature in the Easter Monday clash with Hawthorn.
At the time of the incident, Fox Footy commentator Dermott Brereton expected the MRO to "look at the reaction from the players around".
"If it’s a fair action, there’s no reaction from players around them. Nick Haynes comes in to remonstrate and he’s been in about two fights in whole life - mostly with his little brother," Brereton said.
"I don’t think Danger wanted to get him in the head, I don’t think Danger wanted to hurt him, but that man Matty de Boer decided ‘I’m going to tag the best player in the comp’. He half grabs an arm, he hooks an arm off the ball just to say ‘I’m niggling you, you’re not going to have a free run at the ball’.
"It’s off the ball - and it’s a deliberate action. He’s got something to answer for here."
Off-the-ball actions were brought into the spotlight last week when Richmond superstar Dustin Martin copped a one-game suspension for striking GWS’ Adam Kennedy.
The Martin incident was downgraded from medium impact to low, and likely played a part in the Dangerfield grading.
Meanwhile, Carlton midfielder Will Setterfield was offered a two-game ban for a dangerous tackle on Gold Coast’s Wil Powell.
Charged as rough conduct, Setterfield's tackle was assessed as careless conduct with high impact and high contact, with Powell's head hitting the ground in the tackle.
Wil Powell is currently undergoing a medical assessment after this tackle from Will Setterfield. #AFLSunsBlues pic.twitter.com/tOKQDJESuN
— AFL (@AFL) April 14, 2019
