‘Action and consequence, not past record’ should be the focus after brutal AFL on-field punch

The fallout is extraordinary and it's hard to believe that it's all been started by West Coast Eagle’s Andrew Gaff who is largely regarded as a good guy within AFL circles.

It was an off the play incident and now Fremantle Docker Andrew Brayshaw has a broken jaw and won't be able to eat solids for a month or play for the rest of the year.

As a former president of the AFLPA and spectator yesterday - I was shocked.

This was a violent act that many, including me, thought would never again be seen on an AFL field.

It takes us back to Leigh Matthews on Neville Bruns in 1985 or Barry Hall on Brent Staker in 2008, which resulted in a seven-week suspension.

The community’s attitude towards one punch attacks have changed drastically where if this happened on the street, the law would take care of it.

The AFL will now run its Tribunal process and given this change in sentiment, seven weeks - the rest of the season, including all four finals seems - to be the starting point, but not the end result.

This is all about action and consequence ,not character or past record, and the community standards are going to play a significant role here.

As a father who may have children one day involved in sport, a statement needs to be made.