Australian media quick to criticise Johnson

MEDIA outlets Down Under were quick to criticise the actions of AFL player Chris Johnson of the Brisbane Lions in yesterday’s International Rules game.

“The night, and to some extent the series, will be again remembered for a single, savage act by an Australian player, justified neither by the context of the match nor the series,” wrote Chip Le Grand in The Australian.

“The immediate ramification for Johnson, apart from having to sit out the second half of last night’s game, is a match review panel sitting to decide an appropriate suspension. At the very least, it should cost him a trip to Ireland.

“The broader impact is the damage that Johnson and his Australian team-mates have done to this annual series of inter-code exhibition matches.”

Karen Lyon in The Age commented on Australia’s victory in Melbourne; the host nation had not previously won an International Rules game in the city, but “the result of the game is likely to be overshadowed by several nasty incidents that are sure to have repercussions for the victorious Australians down the track.”

Johnson himself was quoted in the Melbourne Herald Sun by Mark Stevens and Bruce Matthews: “I apologise to all my family and my friends for doing those sort of actions... they were so out of character.”