‘Not acceptable and never will be’: AFL hands down punishment over Pickett fan incident
The patron who reached over the fence and touched Marlion Pickett during Friday night’s game at Marvel Stadium has been banned from attending AFL matches until the end of 2024.
Pickett had been beaten in a one-on-one making contest with Bulldog Marcus Bontempelli and overcomitted. As Bontempelli ran into the open goal, Pickett was left getting to his feet over the boundary line.
With his back to the crowd, a rogue fan reached out and patted Pickett repeatedly on the shoulder and then started gesturing to the Tiger as he turned around.
If a player initiates like high fiving the cheer squad or whatever that’s fine (like the US example) but leaning over the fence and touching people without their consent is a big no no