‘Staggering’: Lloyd slams ‘ludicrous’ Houston act

Matthew Lloyd has declared it is “ludicrous” that players continue to choose to bump, despite potential consequences.
It follows Port Adelaide’s Dan Houston being slapped with a five-match ban for his dangerous bump on Adelaide Izak Rankine in Showdown 56 in round 23.
During the third quarter of the Power’s 22-point win, the ball landed in Rankine’s hands as he attempted to dispose of it.
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However, Houston attacked and elected to bump Rankine, flooring him and leaving him unconscious on the Adelaide Oval turf, before he was stretchered off.
While the Power argued for a three-week suspension, the league graded the act on the “higher level of carelessness”.
Izak Rankine is knocked down after being bumped by Dan Houston. Mark Brake via Getty Images
Rankine was “exposed and vulnerable”, according to the AFL’s Jeff Gleeson.
“Houston breached that duty of care, and that breach was significant,” Gleeson said.
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“He had time to weigh up his options . The time he had to decided not to bump, the vulnerability of Rankine … lead us to believe this was a serious breach of duty of care.”
Now, Lloyd has had his say on the incident, calling for clubs to stop allowing players to bump, instead of tackle.
“I’m more surprised that after all this time, players are still executing bumps. That’s the most staggering thing to me,” Lloyd said on Nine’s Footy Classified on Wednesday night.
Houston declared at his tribunal hearing Tuesday night that he was not trying to bump, which had Lloyd confused and angered that the Port defender would choose to fight his dangerous act.
“I don’t know what he was trying to do, then. It’s just crazy,” he said.
“You know, you take the risk to bump, hit someone in the head, you’re gone (suspended), yet players are still doing it. Ludicrous.
Izak Rankine of the Crows is knocked out by a late hit from Dan Houston. Getty
“Tell your players, ‘what’s the point? What’s the risk? Why take the risk?’.
Lloyd also proclaimed that he viewed Houston’s act as one that was an attempt to intimidate the Crows.
“I just don’t see, apart from a bit of bravado in a Showdown, not sure what else he was trying to gain out of that,” he said.
Houston will fight his five-match ban at the AFL appeals board on Thursday night.