Aidan Johnson staring down MRO suspension for Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera hit

Kieran Francis

Aidan Johnson staring down MRO suspension for Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera hit image

Melbourne forward Aidan Johnson is set to be suspended for his high bump on St Kilda's Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera - but the punishment might not be as severe as it could have been.

Johnson went airborne to strike Wanganeen-Milera with a bump to the head during the second quarter of the Demons' 28-point loss to St Kilda in Alice Springs on Sunday.

The Saints star was forced to leave the field of play for a head injury assessment (HIA) but passed the concussion test and came back on moments before half-time.

It's likely the assessment of Johnson's action will be downgraded based on the face Wanganeen-Milera wasn't concussed but a suspension is still likely on the way for the incident.

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The length of ban will likely come to down whether the incident is assessed as medium or high impact, with a one-or-two-game suspension likely to stem out of the grading in the impact category.

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon didn't comment directly on the Johnson incident but revealed he was 'concerned' for the game with the amount of players getting suspended of late.

"I like the physicality in the game," Lyon said.

"I'm concerned where the game is heading. I understand the head is sacrosanct and all that, but there was one where Hunter Clark went down to the ball and won it.

"I'm glad Alex Pearce got off. I'll leave it to (the MRO). You just hope every team gets a fair shake. Like, when you need to be fair, hopefully it's fair.

"I've got no comment. I think the game is good order. Sometimes incidents happen. Enough controversy finds me, right?"

Kieran Francis

Kieran Francis is a senior editor at The Sporting News based in Melbourne, Australia. He started at Sportal.com.au before being a part of the transition to Sporting News in 2015. Just prior to the 2018 World Cup, he was appointed chief editor of Goal.com in Australia. He has now returned to The Sporting News where his passions lay in football, AFL, poker and cricket - when he is not on holiday.