The Gold Coast Suns have been unsuccessful in attempting to overturn captain James Tsitas' one-game ban for striking.
Tsitas, Gold Coast's VFL skipper, was slapped with a single-match suspension by the VFL's Match Review Panel after an incident during the Suns' preliminary final win over the Box Hill Hawks at Heritage Bank Stadium last weekend.
The charge handed down by the MRP came from a first-quarter incident including Box Hill's Jacob Koschitzke in a marking contest, with Tsitas' right arm making high contact with the Hawthorn-listed key forward.
The Suns elected to challenge the MRP's decision on Tuesday evening, with the act initially graded as careless conduct, medium impact, and high contact.
While the Suns opted to contest the charge in the hope of freeing Tsitas for this Sunday's VFL Grand Final between Gold Coast and Werribee Tigers at IKON Park, their unsuccessful result means they will turn to contingency planning in the absence of their skipper.
Sunday's decider is scheduled to commence at 3:10 PM (AEST).