Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin has spoken to Steven May about his fine for staging but says the star defender’s character has been unfairly attacked since the incident.
The Demons veteran was hit with a $1875 fine after he successfully feigned for a dangerous tackle free kick during the third quarter of his side’s win over North Melbourne on Saturday night.
May was the first player fined by the AFL for staging in almost 12 months, but Goodwin said there were plenty of other similar incidents that had gone unnoticed.
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“I think there’s been enough focus on Steven for me to have the conversation with him,” the coach said on Tuesday.
“I don’t think he’s the first player to ever try and get a free kick given to him, so clearly he’s a bit embarrassed by the situation but I think some of the talk has been a bit much.
“If you know Steven’s character and his competitiveness … he plays the game to the highest level, and I think one of the things that’s been missed from the weekend is his game on Nick Larkey.”
Goodwin said calling May a “cheat” for his act was “a bit much” and feigning for a free kick could not be connected to a lack of disregard for the AFL’s crackdown on concussion.
“I think it’s a very long bow to draw in this situation. Clearly, Steve was trying to get some delay in the game and a free kick,” Goodwin said.
“I’m sure he’s not the first person to feign for a free kick and get given one, but clearly, it’s an embarrassing situation when it gets called out for staging in the public forum.
“I guess when you get called out like this, you’re probably not going to do it (again).”
Goodwin said Jake Lever just needed to complete training on Tuesday to face Brisbane at the Gabba on Friday night, while Christian Salem (knee soreness) was “progressing well” and also set to play.
Lever, who hasn’t played since he suffered a concussion in round 10 and was subsequently sent for surgery on an existing knee injury, left the field midway through the warm-up for treatment on his right knee shortly after Goodwin spoke.
The star interceptor appeared to get the knee re-strapped before he rejoined the main training group and looked to move freely.
“(Lever) just needs to get through training. He’s done all the match loads the last few weeks and he’s done all the training possible, so it’s just getting through today’s session and he’ll be on the plane up to Brisbane,” Goodwin said.
“It’s going to be great to get one of our leaders back – he’s a really important player to us and obviously helps the back half of the ground.
“(Brisbane) are an incredibly high-scoring team at the moment, they’re very dynamic ahead of the ball … so to get an experienced defender back that will help us not only play on one of those guys but help set the field up in a way defensively that’s very important for us.”
Goodwin said Clayton Oliver was determined to redeem himself after he was tagged out of the Kangaroos clash with only 14 disposals and gave away five free kicks out of frustration.
“He certainly wasn’t happy with how he played on the weekend, not only from an impact perspective but obviously giving away so many free kicks,” the coach said.
“There’s been a lot of talk around Clayton and where he’s at … the contract and all sorts of things are things we’re going to have to work with for a long period of time.
“We all know that he’s put a hell of a lot of work into getting himself ready for AFL footy, and to be honest, he’s still having an impact for this team – he must be doing something right if opposition teams are prepared to tag him.”