Dee-monic

6 Oliver - outstanding as always. 5 Petracca - the unstoppable powerhouse. 4 Viney - what a warrior. 3 May - a rock under pressure. 2 Langdon - where does he get the energy? 1 Harmes - solid performance all round.

6 Viney --- has he ever played a better game? 5 Lever --- would have deserved 6 but for Viney's extraordinary performance. 4 Oliver --- slowish start but very influential in the rip-roaring demolition job that followed. 3 Petracca --- imposing presence but still has a few issues with kicking at goal. 2 Jackson --- caused plenty of problems with his athleticism. 1 Everyone else --- this was a tremendous team effort.

So de Goey doesn't miss a game and, provided he behaves himself, pays no penalty whatsoever for his behaviour. Does the AFL think his disgusting conduct towards women in the USA and Bali is less serious than a dust-up between two Melbourne teammates?

Without Max and TMac, we'll learn a lot more about Jackson's true value in the next few weeks. And the same can be said of Weideman, about to turn 25 and probably facing a challenge which could be make or break for him at AFL level. Speculation about Jackson's future is pointless. If he is determined to leave, he will. For the club, trying desperately to hang on to an unhappy player would be disastrous. Naturally, I hope he stays, and ditto for Brayshaw.

6 Oliver - usual high-class effort. 5 Jordon - showed up some of his more experienced colleagues. 4 Petty - walking wounded but battled bravely. 3 Viney - scrapped tirelessly. 2 Brayshaw - solid under pressure. 1 Petracca - but there's something amiss. He is just not firing as he can and should be. And a special award of 6 to Steven May (for Collingwood, that is).

Steven May might have made a difference to the shambolic defence, but the connection going forward was again non-existent. A big question mark is also growing about the physical fitness of a team that is developing a habit of building useful leads, only to fade away dramatically under pressure. This never happened when Burgess was there. Given the tough draw ahead, a top-four spot is in real danger now.

If Steven May had suffered a significant injury, the criminal law might even have come into play. It is difficult to see how bridges can ever be fully mended when one experienced player shows open contempt for some of his team mates and for concussion recovery rules, and another has responded in a manner which in a domestic violence situation would result in serious charges. And as Luke Jackson ponders his future, what will he make of this fiasco? Unlawful Assault and Common Assault Section 23 of the Summary Offences Act 1966 (Vic) provides a summary statutory offence for ‘unlawful assault’. Unlawful assault charges are heard before the Magistrates’ Court and carry a maximum penalty of 15 penalty units (around $165 per unit) or 3 months imprisonment. However, in the most serious cases of unlawful assault, a person may be charged with ‘common assault’. Common assault is a criminal offence that arises at common law in Victoria (R v Patton [1998] 1 VR 7). These matters are heard before the County Court and carry a maximum penalty of 5 years imprisonment. A person may be charged with unlawful assault if they “unlawfully assaulted or beat another person”. Examples might include threatening to punch someone, hitting another person or spitting at another person. Charges of unlawful assault can be laid even if the victim wasn’t injured.

Deflecting the blame to the media for pouncing on this story is silly. The fault lies entirely with two seasoned and experienced players who behaved like spoilt brats in a kindergarten. A far better solution would have been to impose extremely heavy fines on both, depending on the exact sequence of words and actions, which we may never really know in full. This would have penalised the culprits, not the team. As it is, if we lose a close game to Collingwood on Monday, it would not be unfair to point the finger at May. Very disappointing all round, but it is up to all concerned to make sure this was just a blip, not a season-defining moment.

When a player on the losing side gets top billing from both coaches, you know most of his teammates have been pretty average. I would surmise that Viney got both his well-deserved votes from Goodwin.

Steven May hugely missed. The Lever-May combination has been crucial to the team's defensive structure. As for tonight's continual long-range bombing of the ball into a Swans defence which picked everything off with ease, one has to ask some questions of the coaching staff. As usual. the umpires are attracting criticism, but the plain fact is that Sydney deserved to win.

6 Gawn (then a huge gap to) 5 Brayshaw 4 Viney 3 Oliver 2 Jordon 1 Take your pick from the rest.

If Buddy gets off, the message from the AFL is that it is acceptable to deliberately clip opponents in the face, provided the force used is not excessive, or to claim that the slap or punch was just misdirected. Is this the message the AFL wants to send to the hundreds of thousands of kids playing the game?

For all the TMac haters out there, things could have been very different after May's injury if he had been playing instead of Weideman.