THE AFL has denied any involvement in forcing Geelong's Jimmy Bartel to sit out a week after the veteran sustained a well-publicised concussion earlier this season.

The Cats decided not to play the star midfielder in the round four clash with North Melbourne after Bartel was knocked out by an errant knee from Gold Coast onballer Michael Rischitelli a week prior.

Despite rumours to the contrary, AFL medical director Peter Harcourt said the League did not intervene in the Bartel concussion process.

"We (the AFL) didn't get involved in the decision-making for Bartel. You have got to applaud them (Geelong), it highlights their focus on player welfare is good," Harcourt told News Limited.

“We don’t actively get involved in return-to-play decisions with difficult concussion cases. 

"I am actually really happy with club doctors, they are managing it well and there is a lot of trust."

Bartel said on Saturday he had cleared his concussion test, but been advised not to play because of the perception it may have created if he received another heavy hit. 

"There was so much talk about it that it put the club in an awkward position. If I got a heavy hit to the head it would have been pretty tough for the club to defend," Bartel told 3AW.

Harcourt said the League does not impose a mandatory week off for concussed players, and says the AFL will be flexible around recovery times based on expert advice.

"At the moment the gold standard is the clinical assessment and functional activity of the player — how he can function in relation to a game," Harcourt said.

"We are keeping an open mind on everything — it’s the best place to be. We are not holding an entrenched view or belief in something. 

“We just do what is best practice at the moment and modify it when science changes.”