Brisbane Lions superstar Lachie Neale may attempt to lean on the "exemplary record" clause to clear himself for the AFL grand final against Fremantle after being handed a one-match suspension.
Neale was offered the ban over the gut punch that floored Hawthorn's Jack Ginnivan behind play during the Lions' nine-point win in an epic preliminary final on Saturday night.
The incident was graded intentional conduct, medium impact and body contact.
Within minutes of the AFL releasing the match review findings on Sunday, Brisbane confirmed they will challenge the ban.
Vision shows Ginnivan wrestling with Brisbane forward Eric Hipwood, before Neale jogs over and hits the Hawthorn player with a left-handed punch to the stomach.
Adelaide forward Riley Thilthorpe and Hawks pair James Sicily and Dylan Moore are among a raft of players who have been suspended over similar incidents this season.
Those bans came after former Lions chief executive Greg Swann - in his new role as AFL football boss - brought in a minimum one-match penalty for gut punches.
New match review guidelines state intentional strikes to the stomach are automatically graded as medium impact rather than low, resulting in one-match bans.
But Brisbane will try their luck at the tribunal as doubt over Neale's availability dominates headlines at the start of grand final week.
The two-time premiership winner has never been suspended in his 320-game career and could use the same clause that helped games record-holder Scott Pendlebury escape suspension for his bump on Adelaide's Josh Worrell this season.
Under AFL regulations, "a player with an exemplary record may argue that their good record constitutes exceptional and compelling circumstances".
Neale's other option is to attempt to have the impact grading reduced, though that route appears less likely to be successful.
Neale risks missing the premiership decider against his former club, but could also have played his last game for the Lions.
The 33-year-old is widely expected to join Collingwood as a free agent in the off-season.
Neale is no stranger to grand final week drama, after his calf injury was the major talking point ahead of the 2025 decider against Geelong.
The brilliant midfielder ultimately played as the substitute - under a system that has since been thrown out - and starred with 17 disposals and one goal to help the Lions secure back-to-back flags.
The dual Brownlow medallist wasn't the only player under match review scrutiny after Saturday's preliminary final.
Hawthorn defenders Sicily ($10,000) and Tom Barrass ($5000) were handed massive fines for misconduct after they had angry words with umpire Hayden Meyer immediately after the final siren.
It followed a controversial finish, in which a holding-the-ball free paid against Hawthorn's Jarman Impey gifted Brisbane's Hugh McCluggage the go-ahead goal in the dying stages.
The league determined the fixed financial sanction for abusive language towards an umpire was inadequate, and so charged Sicily and Barrass under the "other misconduct'' provision.
Hawks midfielder Jai Newcombe was cleared over his first-quarter contact with Neale in a collision that involved opponents pushing the two players into each other.
