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WATCH: Saint set for MRO scrutiny after head-high bump on Roos’ skipper

The veteran Saint appears destined for a date with the Tribunal.

Published by
Zero Hanger

St Kilda defender Jimmy Webster appears destined for a date with the Tribunal after the veteran Saint collected North Melbourne co-captain Jy Simpkin with a sickening head-high bump.

The collision in question came with little more than a minute to go during the Saints and Kangaroos pre-season clash at Moorabbin, with Webster making a bee-line for Simpkin, elevating off the ground and collecting the dual Syd Barker medallist in a bumping motion.

After a brief scuffle between the opposing sides, Webster departed the scene of the hit with a smile on his face.

Despite wearing heavy contact and appearing dazed, Simpkin was able to leave the ground under his own volition.

"That's not a good look," Webster's former teammate and current commentator Leigh Montagna expressed on Fox Footy's coverage.

"That's exactly what we're trying to stamp out of the game."

Webster's choice to jump and bump comes less than a week after Port Adelaide forward Sam Powell-Pepper was suspended for the opening four weeks of the 2024 AFL season for his own bump on Irish Crow Mark Keane.

Since debuting in Round 7 of the 2013 season, Webster, 30, has played exactly 150 games for the Saints, with the Tasmanian earning a reputation for his gung-ho attitude when it comes to attacking the contest.

Sunday's act is not the first time Webster's actions have caught the eye of the MRO and the ire of the public, with the Glenorchy product sighted and suspended in 2017 for eye-gouging then-Docker Nick Suban.

Webster is set to come out of contract at the cessation of the 2024 season.

Irrespective of the lenght of his imminent suspension, Webster is now a near certainty to miss St Kilda's season-opening clash against Geelong at Kardinia Park on Saturday, March 16.

Published by
Zero Hanger