Brandon Jack: Let’s not lie about what footy is, as player protection goes too far at tribunal

I’m at a pub, several drinks deep, as I read that. The woman next to me is counting out a series of rocks she has found and asking me how many there are (15, there are 15 rocks, she counts them several times).

This is bizarre.

Even more bizarre: the tribunal media person has become one of the most prominent people in the game. David Zita has developed a fan base. That’s telling, right? When the hell did the tribunal become the central story week after week?

Sure, it’s been a boring season to some degree – a clear frontrunner in the Sydney Swans with a timid peloton dishing out empty promises. But this? When did guideline 4.3(E) on Rough Conduct become the jewel in the crown?

The pendulum has swung too far with regards to preserving the safety of players and this week it’s come to a proverbially over-protected head.

Toby Bedford’s tackle on Tim Taranto was perfect. He pinned the arms of the ball carrier. He didn’t fall into his back. This should be shown in team meetings as a highlight, as an example of what a team wants to see. Bedford should go into that review with a sense of excitement that his teammates will pat him on the back for a chase-down effort.

But now it’s likely shown for another reason. As something to avoid. Or as something that no one really understands but has to try and figure out.

A game of football is many things. It can be a symphony. It can be a tragedy. But what it comes closest to is a demolition derby. It is collisions. Directionless carnage. And hit after hit after hit. It is the sort of thing you can derive enjoyment from without any context. When you see bodies collide, a fall from a height. Your eyes widen. This is entertainment on a transcendental level.

These decisions and bans are putting players in two minds. They are adding an unnecessary layer of thought to actions. They are a jarring speedhump to the flow of the game, stifling the intensity that we crave.

A level of protection has been put in. Protocols to have players tested for concussion mid-game. To baseline them at the start of the year. To put decisions in the hands of medical personnel instead of coaches and players. These guardrails encircle the game, but they do not change its core.

With the tackles put under the microscope this season, we have overlooked the willingness of players to play the game they want to play. We have infantilised them.

Have you been inside the mind of a player? It’s a selfish mind at times. It wants what it wants and it doesn’t care what it takes. It’s taking tomorrow’s happiness and using it today. It’s putting the chips on the table. It doesn’t care for 20 years when it can’t walk or talk.

Football is not played to come out the other side with an intact body or mind. It is a sacrifice. Sadly. This is why we watch. We are entertained by people putting their bodies on the line. Do not lie to yourself and say that’s not part of the deal. It is. It always has been.

And the players accept that. If not, then why play? Walk away. If you are worried about your future, walk away.

Often associated with ice hockey is the Roman legal maxim Volenti non fit iniuria, of which one translation is: “To the willing comes no injury.” Players of all contact sport accept the risk when they take the field. It is their choice to play the physical game.

Now more than ever, the knowledge is there about the risks. Maybe decades ago, before it was known, you could plead ignorance. But now there is enough noise and education and forewarning that it is either negligence or acceptance if you choose to carry on.

Culpability for one’s actions is a lesson learnt from a young age. Right now, the AFL is trying to teach this lesson that if you tackle a certain way or cause damage to another player’s head, then you will be punished. Inadvertently, they are doing the opposite and we are all losing from it.

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The players who consent to play the game, a type of game that involves the potential for injury, are being shielded from the outcome of that choice. They are being turned into infants. And in that process, the actions of the game are being broken down to an unnecessary degree and we are all very confused. The pendulum has swung too far when the willing participants are still willing.

They want to play it that way. We want to watch. Don’t ruin it for us, please.

– BRANDON JACK, author and journalist, played for the Sydney Swans from 2013-2017.