Former Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury will be bracing for the second Match Review charge of his 19-year career after striking Brisbane's Lachie Neale in the stomach on Thursday night.
It took the Magpies' record games holder 352 matches to pick up his first offence, with Pendlebury's only past indiscretion coming in 2022 for rough conduct on Port Adelaide's Sam Powell-Pepper.
The 36-year-old's record now looks set to double, with a charge for striking Neale expected to be handed down by the AFL's Match Review Officer on Friday evening.
The third-quarter incident in Thursday's 20-point win over the Lions is unlikely to see Pendlebury handed a suspension, with the MRO's conduct grading likely to fall under 'careless' rather than 'intentional' given the two players were around the contest of the ball.
The contact grading will be set at 'body', while the level of impact will range between 'low' and 'medium'.
Lachie Neale received a free kick following this incident involving Scott Pendlebury.#AFLLionsPies pic.twitter.com/2rE1poEp54
— AFL (@AFL) March 28, 2024
The most likely outcome would be a fine for Pendlebury under the gradings of careless, body and low.
It would take gradings of both 'intentional' conduct and 'medium' impact, along with the 'body' contact grading, for Pendlebury to be facing a week off - an unlikely outcome.
A medical report from the Lions on Neale could potentially impact the outcome if one is provided in time.
Speaking toย Channel 7ย after the game, Pendlebury admitted he "got sucked in" and eventually apologised to Neale.
"I said sorry to him, I didn't mean to get him right there," the Magpies veteran said.
"What will be will be, retaliator always gets caught, Mum taught me that, I got sucked in tonight."
The expected MRO outcome will mean Pendlebury is available for his side's Gather Round clash with Hawthorn next Sunday at Adelaide Oval, which will be the club great's 388th match in the black and white.
Pendlebury could bring up yet another milestone in that match, with the dual premiership Magpie needing just 29 more disposals to become the first player with 10,000 recorded disposals in the V/AFL.
Stunningly, if Pendlebury records 16 kicks and 13 handballs during next week's clash, he will reach the five-digit feat with a perfect balance of 5,000 disposals for each.
The Magpies will enter Gather Round with a 1-3 record after picking up their first victory of the season against the winless Lions at the Gabba.