THE REVAMPED match review panel system might save Geelong midfielder Steve Johnson from suspension after he was reported for rough conduct in the second quarter of the game against Hawthorn.
The 31-year-old entered the book after he cannoned into the back of Hawthorn star Sam Mitchell during the second quarter.
It will be up to the MRP to assess the incident and classify it according to the new rules.
The panel members may, of course, throw the Johnson charge out.
If not, they will have several decisions to make on the incident, which would appear likely to be graded at the lower end of the scale of offences, given Mitchell was able to play out the game.
Under the new system if the action is considered careless and low impact, or intentional and low impact, Johnson will merely incur a fine.
This is different from the previous system where he may have incurred a suspension – particularly if he had carry-over points from a previous incident – or a reprimand that would make him vulnerable if he was charged again later in the season.
Under the new system, however, it takes three fines in a season before a suspension is automatically applied.
Given Johnson has faced eight charges since the start of 2012 and missed five weeks in the past two years, it's fair to say he is a recidivist when it comes to match review reports; something of a cut and paste job for those on the panel, and someone well aware of the problems that carry-over points can caused in the past.
Of course, if the MRP considers the act warrants a week's suspension – that would be the absolute outer limit given the nature of incident – then Johnson will add another week on to the sentence because he has missed more than two weeks through suspension in the past two seasons.
That would see the star Cat miss games against Fremantle and Gold Coast.
Geelong coach Chris Scott was not going to condemn the 31-year-old after the game, as he had not seen the incident nor heard exactly what had led to Johnson being reported.
Scott's philosophy is rarely one of condemnation anyway.
"I tend to trust my players [and] believe in the good side of them first before I'm critical," Scott said.
But it would be remarkable if a tinge of frustration didn't exist because once again Johnson has left himself vulnerable.
He hopes Johnson gets lucky in this instance.
"Hopefully the new rules will be kind to him," Scott said.
