Play Nice Was that Gaffs last game for WC?

Bunk Moreland

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The problem is there seemed to be a chorus of crying foul for a year there where they did start to crack down a bit, and subsequently softened their rules again to the three strikes regime, and now to even further on small incidents.
It’s just easier sometimes to have a black and white rule. You throw a punch, you go for a week (at least). At least it’s clear and this sort of stuff will be taken out of the game.
 

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Ghossein

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If you want people to believe you, stop changing the story
am i responsible for what everyone has said on this forum now? I can only talk from where I was sitting, and where I was we didn't know.

you, someone i'm assuming wasn't even at the game, would have even less of an idea.
 

Monument Hills

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Fallout for Gaff and future decisions:

For the coward punch (or since Danny Green is a WC supporter, a 'remorseful, unintentional, accidental, love tap'), 6-8 weeks based on precedent.

There will not be any police action whether it is warranted (on legal grounds, not emotional opinion) or not.

Freo will hate West Coast more than ever, if that is possible. Freo fans next derby will even out-boo West Coast, if that is possible.

The game will go on the rest of the year, just not with Brayshaw or Gaff playing in it.

Brayshaw's Dad will give Adam Simpson a piece of his mind next AFL coaches association meeting.

Gaff will probably not go to the Melbourne FC (not that they could have much cap space left anyway).

Hamish Brayshaw will no longer be friends with Gaff, but the rest of West Coast (aided by their "Principal Media Partner" sponsors, The West Australian Newspapers and Channel 7) "will wrap their arms around Gaff" (some cynical people might incorrectly say: in an supreme effort to keep Gaff from signing with a Melbourne club at the end of the year), the remorseful victim with good character, and 'good bloke' that he is, and help him get through this tough time, no thanks to Brayshaw intentionally ducking his head to cause severe contact with Gaff's slightly clenched hand that was simply reaching for the ball which he believed was somewhere in the vicinity of Brayshaw's chest. Then they will help counsel Gaff through the immediate remorse he felt afterwards for the downed Brayshaw when he ran straight down field and continued playing. Then the further remorse when he cried on the bench realising that Brayshaw's ducking into his outstretched hand while he was innocently trying to shake off some wrist cramp, will now cause some damage to his reputation and Brownlow chances (Mitchell chuckles...)

Gaff will leave WC at the end of the year, no longer able to walk the streets of Perth without inciting angry hecklers, Fremantle will be off limits altogether, and not wanting to play Freo twice each year for the rest of his career in Perth and risk some other spiteful Dockers player ducking their head anywhere near his soft, innocent, good blokey, outstretched hands. On the other hand, he will miss the cuddles from Simpson which does make him feel all warm and special and innocenty.
 

Forward Press

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Nice melt.

Fact is, if this happened on the street you would be in jail.

Maybe you should staring booing instead to get your point across.
If what Barry Hall did on Brent Staker happened on the street he would also be in jail. Same for loads of other incidents that attracted more than a month from the tribunal.

Doesn't mean what Gaff did will see him before a court, though.
 

Ghossein

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'hey he did something bad but he's a good guy so that makes the bad thing OK'.

And

'he did something bad and we're all shocked by it because it's not something he has done before or something we ever expected to see him do'.

Explain the difference to me here? They're both statements on his character based on past behaviour.

So guess what? Now that hes done it, it IS his character. Funny how that works huh?
one is attempting to excuse his actions, the other is simply pointing out that he isn't the kind of guy that you would expect to do something so reprehensible. the difference is pretty similar and extends far beyond "they're both statements on his character so they're exactly the same".
 

rfctiger74

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am i responsible for what everyone has said on this forum now? I can only talk from where I was sitting, and where I was we didn't know.

you, someone i'm assuming wasn't even at the game, would have even less of an idea.
Fair enough, you can think that

Just like I can think you are lying because I don't buy that none of you questioned once why gaff was in tears and what triggered it, and why Brayshaw was gone and not on the bench
 

Smeg Head

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It’s just easier sometimes to have a black and white rule. You throw a punch, you go for a week (at least). At least it’s clear and this sort of stuff will be taken out of the game.
In full agreement on that. Its always been pissweak to have the jumper and gut punches but the AFL like to have its cake and eat it too on promoting the game as hard and tough.
 

Yidaki

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It's an unfortunate situation all round.

Personally I feel that Gaff was intending for a punch to the side of chest like what happens normally during a game. However, he misjudged terribly and hit Brayshaw square in the face. There's no doubt in my mind that Gaff was not intending to harm Brayshaw. As many have pointed out it's out of his character and his good record proves this. However, what does concern me is the force with which he hit with. Breaking a jaw and displacing teeth requires some amount of force. Even if he missed his face that would have caused some damage had it hit the chest or ribs. Typical in game jabs aren't swung with that amount of force. I really don't know why he would have so much strength behind what should have been a small "jumper punch"?

I don't think his career should be tarnished over this. However, no one forgets and the facts are that Gaff will be remembered by that punch that put Brayshaw in hospital. There's no way he is going to jail. Those calls are absurd. Criminal chargers? Well as Malifice pointed out, it's highly unlikely. I think the AFL sanctions and any imposed by West Coast should be enough. I would however expect Gaff to apologise in person to Gaff and his family and help Brayshaw with whatever he needs to get back out there on the field.

In regard to West Coast fans applauding Gaff, I feel that maybe a small minority (and a very small one at that) may have applauded what Gaff did. However, the majority of West Coast fans were oblivious to what had happened as has been pointed out earlier and saw on the big screen Gaff emotionally distraught on the bench. This likely brought on the cheers etc. I'm giving the benefit of the doubt to the West Coast fans here. No one in their right mind applauds assault. Only a small handful of idiots would.

What's the penalty? Well I think around 6-8 weeks is fair here. Despite his good record, the AFL have to make a firm stand and stamp Gaff out for the remainder of the year. There's no way he is playing again in 2018 when he just put a kid in hospital. Unfortunate for Gaff, but the onus is on him. He has to take full responsibility for this and take the penalty.

I will say one more thing. People screaming on social media for Gaff's head are ****en idiots. Calm the **** down and put down the keyboard. The bloke made a terrible mistake. Let's not burn him at the stake.

All the best to Brayshaw and his family. Also, I hope Gaff's mental health is looked after. Learn from your mistakes and make the necessary changes.
 

Pacman82

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I can see why people are getting all worked up, I felt the same way after the Cameron hit on Andrews. To me it looked like Gaff threw the punch with the intention to probably just stun his opponent but caught him right on the button. Reality now is Brayshaw requires surgery, will be eating his meals through a straw for the next month & will have to work extra hard over the break to get his strength/size back. Suspension for the rest of the year's the only penalty that will resemble justice.
 

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Bunk Moreland

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JackFlash

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Counselling? Are you joking? He will rightly feel like a piece of shit for the next 6 months and that's about it, then will get back to playing footy. His value to the Vic clubs chasing him doesn't fall very much at all. He's also the 3rd most important mid in our team behind Shuey and Yeo. If we have to pay him over a million pa to secure him, I'd almost be inclined to let him leave...almost.
Wow you really don't know much about life at all?
If you think Gaff can just brush this off that easily your naivety is extraordinary. Watching his own response to the incident and his subsequent "brave" interview post game, he might not recover at all to play with anyone? He probably will in time, i hope he does, but he's going to need an awful lot of club support along the way. He's going to have a long summer, a long pre season and maybe 8 weeks into next season to contemplate it all. This all goes beyond his value as a player and his whole career is currently in jeopardy. Nobody knows how he will comeback from this, it's going to take a helluva lot of COUNSELING and life advice in order to get him back on track. He will be feeling absolutely shitful right now. I have empathy for Gaff, we don't want two victims here.
 

Ghossein

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Fair enough, you can think that

Just like I can think you are lying because I don't buy that none of you questioned once why gaff was in tears and what triggered it, and why Brayshaw was gone and not on the bench
I didn't see gaff in tears, my seats are on the exact opposite end of the ground and on the third tier, and i didn't bring binoculars. This might surprise you but as an eagles fan I don't spend the game watching the docker's players. I saw Brayshaw lying on the ground in pain, and then come off with the blood rule. The actual incident was in a part of the ground my seats can't see since it was right on the boundary line below my tier.

Call me a liar all you want, but I know what information I had at the time.
 

big bootaaaaah

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What is the difference between Krakouer's assault which resulted in jail time and Gaff's?

One happened whilst a footballer was wearing a uniform and the other without. Is that a defence?
So do we go and arrest all past on field assaulters still living or just Gaff? Ffs
 

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And I'm saying your supporters changed the narrative on this once already, and I'm calling bs on the current one

You're right, after the game we all got together to decide what our story would be.


Different people have different opinions and firsthand accounts. Shocking, I know.
 

Richard Pryor

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On reflection, it is so bizarre to me that Gaff did it. Even if he was aiming for the body, the fact he put enough force in it to put a guy on a liquid diet for weeks means he probably would have cracked his ribs anyway. From the footage Brayshaw didn't even shove him like Mills in the Bugg incident.

Just a bizarre decision you'd only expect from a psycho like Hall.
 

greatwhiteshark

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It's an unfortunate situation all round.

Personally I feel that Gaff was intending for a punch to the side of chest like what happens normally during a game. However, he misjudged terribly and hit Brayshaw square in the face. There's no doubt in my mind that Gaff was not intending to harm Brayshaw. As many have pointed out it's out of his character and his good record proves this. However, what does concern me is the force with which he hit with. Breaking a jaw and displacing teeth requires some amount of force. Even if he missed his face that would have caused some damage had it hit the chest or ribs. Typical in game jabs aren't swung with that amount of force. I really don't know why he would have so much strength behind what should have been a small "jumper punch"?

I don't think his career should be tarnished over this. However, no one forgets and the facts are that Gaff will be remembered by that punch that put Brayshaw in hospital. There's no way he is going to jail. Those calls are absurd. Criminal chargers? Well as Malifice pointed out, it's highly unlikely. I think the AFL sanctions and any imposed by West Coast should be enough. I would however expect Gaff to apologise in person to Gaff and his family and help Brayshaw with whatever he needs to get back out there on the field.

In regard to West Coast fans applauding Gaff, I feel that maybe a small minority (and a very small one at that) may have applauded what Gaff did. However, the majority of West Coast fans were oblivious to what had happened as has been pointed out early saw on the big screen Gaff emotionally distraught on the bench. This likely brought on the cheers etc. I'm giving the benefit of the doubt to the West Coast fans here. No one in their right mind applauds assault. Only a small handful of idiots would.

What's the penalty? Well I think around 6-8 weeks is fair here. Despite his good record, the AFL have to make a stand firm and stamp Gaff out for the remainder of the year. There's no way he is playing again in 2018 when he just put a kid in hospital. Unfortunate for Gaff, but the onus is on him. He has to take full responsiblity for this take the penalty.

I will say one more thing. People screaming on social media for Gaff's head are ****en idiots. Calm the **** down and put down the keyboard. The bloke made a terrible mistake. Let's not burn him at the stake.

All the best to Brayshaw and his family. Also, I hope Gaff's mental health is looked after. Learn from your mistakes and make the changes necessary.
He didn't put a kid in hospital, a kid is someone who plays junior football. He put an AFL player in hospital. His age is of zero relevance. Getting sick and tired of grown men being called kids yet are playing in a Best of the Best senior AFL football comp. Brayshaw does not deserve to be punched like that and more or less than a 28 year old. If he is a kid then head back to colts where the kids play.
 

Magus

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one is attempting to excuse his actions, the other is simply pointing out that he isn't the kind of guy that you would expect to do something so reprehensible. the difference is pretty similar and extends far beyond "they're both statements on his character so they're exactly the same".
It doesn't matter if you expect it from him or not. The fact that anyone would call him a good guy is built on the knowledge that he has a clean record.

You wouldn't expect it from him vs. He's a good bloke. They're the same thing.
 

Ghossein

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Gaff will get 6-8 weeks.

I want to know exactly what prompted Gaff to belt Brayshaw.

Was Brayshaw niggling? I don't believe for a second that the punch was unprovoked.
it looks like general tagging annoyance, the kind players like Gaff should be more than used to by now
 

Yidaki

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He didn't put a kid in hospital, a kid is someone who plays junior football. He put an AFL player in hospital. His age is of zero relevance. Getting sick and tired of grown men being called kids yet are playing in a Best of the Best senior AFL football comp. Brayshaw does not deserve to be punched like that and more or less than a 28 year old. If he is a kid then head back to colts where the kids play.
I understand your point, but in terms of playing senior AFL, he is a kid.
 
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