Adelaide forward Darcy Fogarty will miss the next three weeks after the AFL Tribunal on Monday night upheld his striking ban, a decision that weakens the Crows' push for a top-four finish. Fogarty was suspended for a hit on Sydney's Harry Cunningham during Adelaide's win at the SCG on Friday, an incident the tribunal graded as careless conduct with high contact and severe impact.
The ban rules Fogarty out of games against Collingwood, Essendon and Richmond. Adelaide sits fifth on the ladder, level on points with Brisbane and Melbourne in a tight group chasing the double chance, and losing its most reliable forward for a month leaves little room in a finals race being decided on percentage.
At the top, Fremantle has pulled clear. The Dockers beat Port Adelaide by 28 points at Adelaide Oval on Saturday, recovering from an early deficit with five goals in 13 minutes early in the third quarter, and now lead the ladder by 12 points at 16 wins and two losses. Jye Amiss kicked four goals, with Josh Treacy and Michael Frederick adding three each. With four rounds left before the finals, Fremantle is on course for the minor premiership.
Elsewhere in round 19, Collingwood held off Carlton by 21 points at the MCG, Nick Daicos gathering 36 disposals, and Hawthorn put 70 points on Richmond in the round's heaviest defeat. Brisbane accounted for West Coast, Melbourne beat North Melbourne, and Essendon caused the upset of the round, edging Greater Western Sydney by three points at Marvel Stadium.
Fogarty was not the only player before the match review officer. Essendon's Kyle Langford was suspended for one match for a bump on GWS captain Stephen Coniglio, while Fremantle's Andrew Brayshaw and the Western Bulldogs' Joel Freijah were fined for making contact with umpires, part of the competition's tougher line on umpire contact this year.
In the NRL, Cronulla produced the weekend's statement, thrashing the Dolphins 66-0. The Cowboys beat Manly 19-18, South Sydney edged Newcastle 26-24, and Canberra put 40 points on Canterbury. Penrith stayed on top of the ladder as the run to the finals tightened.
With four rounds until the finals, the top eight is close behind Fremantle. Sydney holds second, with Hawthorn, Brisbane, Adelaide and Melbourne bunched behind it and separated by percentage in the fight for a double chance. For Adelaide, the next month without Fogarty will decide which side of the top four it finishes on.
