Hawthorn star James Sicily could be in hot water with the match review officer after Lions midfielder Hugh McCluggage was knocked out from his tackle during the fourth quarter of Saturday afternoon’s fixture.
Sicily’s Hawks went on to claim a major upset against the Lions with a 15. 8. (98) to 11. 7. (73) victory at the MCG, but it may come at a cost after the skipper only just returned to the side following a previous suspension.
In a bizarre set of circumstances, McCluggage seemingly refused to get on the MediCart after the incident, preferring to walk around the stadium towards the bench.
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The umpire couldn’t resume until McCluggage was safely away from the play, which took several minutes.
“He’s got to get on that cart surely,” commentator Kelli Underwood said on Fox Footy as McCluggage walked off.
The Lions vice-captain was seemingly able to walk fine when travelling around the field, not requiring too much assistance from club trainers, however it did cause a significant stoppage.
“That’s good signs that he can walk unaided, I’m not sure why they didn’t put him on that cart though,” Underwood added.
Footage then showed McCluggage on the bench wrapped in a jacket, with AFL great Jordan Lewis stating the incident should be looked at from a logistical point of view.
“That would be a process that needs to be reviewed, into the way that was handled,” he said.
Lions coach Chris Fagan confirmed McCluggage won’t feature in the side’s next match against Sydney.
“He’s concussed, he’s OK at the moment, I just had a chat to him,” he said. “He’ll obviously miss our next game but the main thing is he makes a good recovery.”
Down 79-72 with 12 minutes remaining, the Lions Saturday afternoon didn’t get much better after the incident as Hawthorn pulled off a shock result.
Lewis’ on fire
The victory was the club’s fourth of the season while Brisbane are on a two-game losing streak.
It marked just Hawthorn’s fourth win of the season, while Brisbane slipped to a second straight loss.
Hawks had to work for it though, with the Lions blowing a 8.3 (51) to 5.4 (34) half-time lead.
Mitch Lewis was the hero for the home side, kicking four goals while Sicily was at his best, claiming 32 disposals and 12 marks.
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