Watching Izak Rankine get flattened by Dan Houston in a cowardly act during The Showdown on Saturday night was not fun.
One of the game’s best in the front half was laid out comprehensively and reports of Crows coach Matthew Nicks referring to the impact as a ‘dog act’ are hard to take offence towards.
Houston will sit for an extended period and potentially have played his final match for Port Adelaide.
At the time of writing the case was pending at the tribunal and after the intense media focus that rightfully called out the cheapest of cheap shots, Houston will hopefully have been whacked with at least five weeks for his handiwork.
(Editors note: Houston was later found guilty and handed a five-week ban)
Whilst the bump/hit was awful to watch and Houston, in a more measured and balanced competition would be sent from the field for his action, the aftermath actually took things to another level.
Some Port Adelaide fans felt the need to escort Rankine from the field with a clear chorus of boos.
So sick was the send-off that the actual blow became secondary and for the umpteenth time, a small yet noticeable section of AFL fans managed to perform in a manner rarely seen across the country in other codes.
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No one supports their sport quite like AFL fans, and that is what plays a major role in making it the most engrossing, financially successful and powerful game in the country.
Yet the ability of the minority to disgrace the code and the continued reluctance of the governing body to actually take a stand and remove the Neanderthal element is embarrassing for the top brass at AFL house.
Frankly, as a fan of over 40 years, it is sickly.
Fans of the game pay membership fees, fork out coin at the gates, buy merchandise and engage directly with the club, players and coaching staff.
The investment is all to make them feel a part of the club; like a piece of the overall jigsaw that, when a premiership is won, means they have in fact contributed to the success.
Izak Rankine is knocked out by a late hit from Dan Houston. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images)
It is about ownership, belonging and participation. Hence, when fans carry on the way they did in Adelaide after Houston clocked Rankine in emphatic fashion, the entire organisation should be punished.
Instead, Houston stayed on the ground, the Crows played a man down and despite the club being deserving of a broad punishment that would force them to address the culprits, ban them, or take steps to ensure the same never happens again, all and sundry will walk free.
Except Houston of course.
It is an AFL-wide problem. Brawls in the stands, bananas thrown onto playing surfaces to taunt Indigenous players, reckless and underserved booing based on nothing but hatred and a simple-mindedness in supporters that reeks of low intellect are all still sadly part of the modern-day AFL dynamic.
On Saturday night it was on show again and I’m certain that I was not the only life-long fan of the game embarrassed by what we saw on television.
We all love passion in the stands, but time after time small groups let the game down. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Media/Getty Images)
The concept of playing hard, shaking hands and celebrating the contest appears to be well embraced by the players, yet fans of the game who loathe seeing athletes smiling after the final siren and long for a deep hatred are the ones fueling the issues such as we saw during The Showdown.
Why is it that a small percentage of AFL fans cannot manage to support their teams without referring to insane conspiracy theories involving umpires, watch the matches without a vicious hatred of the opposition or enjoy a contest without the need to spit vitriol towards individual players and opposing supporter groups?
The Showdown brings the worst out in the game most years, as does the odd Battle of the Bridge or traditional clashes between Melbourne clubs that have hated each other for over a hundred years.
Some days are beautiful, with ANZAC Days usually respected and played in good spirits.
Yet rivalries that lead to the pettiness/awfulness such as we saw on Saturday night do nothing for the game other than write a few uncomfortable headlines.
As much as we all love a fierce battle, the honour in the game, and yes, there is still such a thing in professional sport, is well and truly eroded when the boofs in the stands behave in the way they did and when very little is done to prevent it in the future.
The AFL needs to do more, celebrate those of us who support the game in the right way and make a serious attempt to educate the percentage that struggles to understand just how stupid they are.
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