Richmond vice-captain Brett Deledio has explained the incident that led to the first report of his football career, during last Sunday’s clash with Geelong at the MCG.
Deledio, who was playing his first game in a month, after recovering from an Achilles injury, was charged by the AFL’s Match Review Panel with a level three striking offence for a hit on Geelong’s Mathew Stokes.
That offence carried a two-match sanction, which could be reduced to a one-game penalty, with an early plea, due to Deledio’s six-year good record.
Deledio, however, successfully challenged the charge at the Tribunal on Tuesday night, having it downgraded to reckless conduct, which resulted in him getting off with a reprimand.
“It was my stuff-up because I let Taylor Hunt kick a goal on me. I fell over and he kicked the goal and straight away they were in to me verbally, giving it to me,” he said on this week’s edition of the official Club podcast ‘Talking Tigers’.
“I knew that I had to get out of there because they were going to be trying to bump me . . .
“As I was going through, I could hear Matty Stokes in my ear, yelling at me.
“I saw him coming at me, so I’ve put my arm up to fend him off, as you do. You just put the forearm up because you’re not allowed to do anything else.
“I turned away and it slipped up off his shoulder, I think, and hit him in the chin.
“It looks like I’ve gone at him with a blatant elbow, which is something I’ve never done for 10 years (of AFL football), and never done it previous to that, even playing juniors.
“I’ve never been reported once in my entire football career, from the age of eight.
“I pride myself on not being a dirty player, and (I’m) a ball player . . .”
Deledio also spoke about what it was like to return to the playing field, having not missed a match in seven years (140 games in-a-row), before the Achilles problem forced him out of action following Richmond’s Round 2 victory over Carlton.
“It was unreal to be back playing and out there with the boys, but I was a bit rusty early on,” he said.
“I think my first two or three kicks were absolutely butchered things off the boot and I was feeling a bit rushed. Everyone was sweating on me straight away, but I soon settled and picked it (the tempo) up reasonably well . . .”
The dual Jack Dyer Medallist had no issues with his Achilles during or after the game, but felt like he’d been ‘hit by a Mack truck’, as his body readjusted to the vigorous demands of AFL football.
“The Achilles is spot on, but the rest of my body’s a bit sore at the moment. I’m not used to the contests,” he said.
“I’ll be spending a lot of time in the pool and getting myself right over the weekend off.
