King may miss three
03/08/2010 09:26:02 AM
Richmond tagger Jake King could miss the first three rounds of the AFL season after being charged with striking Collingwood's Travis Cloke during Friday's NAB Challenge match at Princes Park.
The match review panel has investigated the incident and interviewed Cloke because the video footage was inconclusive, and charged King with a level-three strike.
The league said the sentence was handed down "Based on the evidence that was provided, including by the victim player ...".
The 25-year-old's poor record means his of demerit points have ballooned to 309.06, enough for a three-match ban.
The onballer's suspension must be served in the home-and-away season, which means the Tigers could be without King for premiership games against Carlton, the Western Bulldogs and possibly Sydney.
He can plead guilty and reduce the penalty to two matches, or challenge the charge at the tribunal on Tuesday night.
King was the only player reported in NAB Cup practice matches and semi-finals over the weekend.