Veteran defender Dustin Fletcher will miss Sunday's important clash with Sydney after the tribunal upheld a tripping charge tonight.
The 35-year-old was given a one-match ban for tripping the Bulldogs' Barry Hall - which could not be reduced with an early plea - after the Match Review Panel reviewed matches from the weekend.
General manager of football operations Paul Hamilton said the club contested the charge and argued that Fletcher's tackling action was 'negligent' rather than 'intentional'.
""Naturally we are very disappointed but we accept the tribunal's decision,"" Hamilton said.
""Dustin has been playing great football and is very important to the side so he will be a big loss.""
Charges Laid:
Dustin Fletcher, Essendon, has been charged with a Level Two tripping offence against Barry Hall, Western Bulldogs, during the second quarter of the Round 10 match between Essendon and the Western Bulldogs, played at Etihad Stadium on Friday May 28, 2010.
In summary, his previous poor record means that his one-match sanction must remain at one match, even with an early plea.
The incident was assessed as intentional conduct (three points), low impact (one point) and body contact (one point). This is a total of five activation points, resulting in a classification of a Level Two offence, drawing 125 demerit points and a one-match sanction. He has an existing bad record of one match suspended within the last three years, increasing the penalty by 10 per cent to 137.50 points. An early plea reduces the sanction by 25 per cent to 103.13 points and a one-match sanction.
