GEELONG forward Steve Johnson will head to the AFL Tribunal on Tuesday night to fight his two-match ban for his bump on Brisbane Lion Pearce Hanley.





And Fremantle midfielder Ryan Crowley will challenge the pinching charge handed down to him by the match review panel on Monday.





Johnson's hit was assessed as negligent conduct, medium impact and high contact.



The initial penalty was 225 demerit points and a two-match ban, but the total increased to 279.04 when Johnson's carryover points stemming from his suspension during the NAB Cup were added.

The addition of the carryover points mean that even with a 25 per cent discount for an early guilty plea, Johnson's penalty remains above the 200-point threshold, so unless he contests the case at the tribunal and wins, he will be sidelined for two matches.









Crowley was offered a $900 fine for the alleged incident on Kangaroos veteran Brent Harvey during the first quarter of Fremantle's 38-point win on Sunday.





On Tuesday, the Dockers confirmed Crowley will fight the charge. He will be fined $1200 if the Tribunal challenge fails.





On Monday, Dockers coach Ross Lyon refuted claims Crowley was a pincher, saying he's confident the charge levelled against the master tagger will be overturned.



Lyon said it appeared the MRP had laid the charge without any hard evidence.



"I heard (panel chairman) Mark Fraser on TV. They've talked about on probability they've laid a charge," Lyon told Perth radio station 6PR.



"You'd think you'd like to lay it on certainty rather than probability, so that's disappointing.



"I think Ryan will challenge. He's disappointed with what's been asserted.



"I back Ryan 100 per cent. If Ryan was out there pinching players I would have a problem with it internally.



"We can make light of it but it's a serious assertion and a disappointing one."



Harvey was clearly aggrieved by the close checking of Crowley, with the pair engaging in several wrestles throughout the match, including one before the first bounce of the ball.



Although they shook hands at the end of the game, Harvey still appeared annoyed by the treatment he'd received from Crowley as the pair engaged in a lengthy chat.



Lyon defended Crowley's tactics.



"Clearly champions get checked closely. A player like Harvey certainly plays on the edge and (is) aggressive and dishes it up," Lyon said.



"I think he's misconstrued the battle. We'll get in there and defend Ryan. I'd be surprised if it wasn't a positive outcome."



Fremantle takes on Geelong at Simonds Stadium on Saturday night.





All other sanctions from round 13 were accepted, so West Coast's Andrew Embley will miss one match, Melbourne's Jake Spencer will miss three and St Kilda's Tom Simpkin will miss two.





