

Merrett is one of six players facing bans after the Match Review Panel's scrutiny of round three.



Collingwood's Taylor Adams, West Coast's Luke Shuey, Greater Western Sydney's Devon Smith and Suns duo Steven May and Brandon Matera are all facing one-match suspensions.



But the under-pressure Richmond hierarchy is breathing a sigh of relief after Matt Thomas and Jack Riewoldt were both offered reprimands rather than suspensions.



The match-day report laid against Sydney Swans co-captain Jarrad McVeigh was thrown out, while incidents involving Fremantle's Jack Hannath and Western Bulldog Liam Jones were looked at but deemed to be within the rules.



Merrett was cited for his crude strike on Swallow, which occurred during the last quarter of Saturday's QClash.

The incident was assessed as intentional, medium impact and high contact.



His initial penalty was 325 demerit points, which became 371.56 once his carryover points were added.



Merrett can accept a 25 per cent discount and escape with a two-match suspension if he pleads guilty.





The Match Review Panel had the ability to refer Merrett's case directly to the Tribunal, but it chose to deal with the charge under its table of offences. General manager of football operations Mark Evans can also refer a case directly to the Tribunal if the MRP calculations are seen to be unreasonable. It is believed Merrett's case won't be referred to the Tribunal, which is yet to sit this season.







Daniel Merrett clashes with David Swallow during Saturday's QClash. Picture: AFL Media





Adams was cited for an off-the-ball bump on Geelong skipper Joel Selwood early in the final quarter of Saturday night's clash at the MCG.



The bump, which left Selwood lying on the ground in pain, was assessed as negligent, low impact and high.

His initial penalty was 125 demerit points, which became 193.75 once his carryover points were taken into account.



Even with a 25 per cent discount for an early guilty plea, Adams will miss Friday night's clash with Richmond unless he contests the verdict at the tribunal and wins.



Shuey is set to miss the Eagles' big clash with Geelong at Simonds Stadium on Saturday night after being cited for striking St Kilda's Tom Curren.



With little video evidence available of the incident, the charge was laid after an investigation by the MRP, which then graded the contact as intentional, low impact and high.



Shuey initially copped 225 demerit points, which became 247.5 after a 10 per cent addition for having a bad record of three matches suspended within the last two years.



He can take a one-match ban if he pleads guilty.



Smith has been cited for striking Bernie Vince during the Giants' win over Melbourne on Sunday.



He also has a bad record, meaning he cannot escape a suspension unless he heads to the tribunal.



May and Matera both caught the MRP's eye for laying high bumps during the Suns' win over the Lions.



Matera can have his two-match suspension reduced to one with an early guilty plea.



Although May's initial penalty was just a one-game ban, his carryover points mean he cannot escape with a reprimand.



In contrast, Riewoldt and Thomas will be able to play this weekend.



Riewoldt can accept a reprimand and 80 carryover points after being booked for tripping Western Bulldogs midfielder Tom Liberatore.



Thomas initially copped a one-match suspension for his sling tackle on Dogs' skipper Ryan Griffen, but he has a good record so he can cop a reprimand and 93.75 carryover points.



Twitter: @AFL_AdamMcNicol Thomas initially copped a one-match suspension for his sling tackle on Dogs' skipper Ryan Griffen, but he has a good record so he can cop a reprimand and 93.75 carryover points.

BRISBANE Lions defender Daniel Merrett faces a two-match suspension for his crude and high strike on Gold Coast midfielder David Swallow on Saturday.