North Melbourne's challenge of Paul Curtis' rough conduct charge at the AFL Tribunal has been unsuccessful, with Curtis' three-game suspension for a dangerous tackle upheld.
Curtis fronted the Tribunal on Tuesday evening after the Roos challenged the Match Review Officer's verdict of the ban, with Curtis' tackle on Port Adelaide's Josh Sinn graded as careless conduct, severe impact and high contact.
Sinn suffered a concussion as a result of the tackle, with Curtis wrapping both of his arms around his opponent in the run-down tackle.
North Melbourne argued Curtis' actions did not warrant a grading of 'careless' conduct, which, if successful, would free Curtis to play in Round 8, and that the impact grading of 'severe' was not justified, which, if granted, would reduce the length of Curtis' suspension.
The Roos pleaded to have the impact grading lowered to 'medium' if the Tribunal upheld the 'careless' conduct grading, which would result in the suspension dropping to a one-game suspension.
The AFL, led by Counsel Sally Flynn, argued Curtis acted unreasonably in the circumstances and could have looked to turn Sinn or release one of his arms in the tackle.
Flynn also stated that Curtis also failed to show a duty of care to his fellow player in the tackle.
"We're not suggesting Curtis should not have tackled. It needs to be reasonable and there needs to be due care," she said.
Curtis, who was represented by Counsel Justin Graham, did not give evidence during the hearing.
Graham highlighted that Curtis dropped his knees to pull Sinn down, while the Power Adelaide defender's knees hitting the turf resulted in the pair being flung forward with their momentum.
Graham added that Curtis' "body language" and "body actions" were to reduce the force of impact.
The Tribunal stated in their summation that Curtis was 'careless' and guilty of rough conduct, arguing he could have made an attempt to roll Sinn to the side and made no attempt to pull Sinn back.
The Tribunal stated the force of Sinn's head with the ground was "significant", and that the 'severe' grading would be upheld.
The Tribunal's verdict means Curtis is unavailable for North Melbourne's upcoming matches against Essendon, Brisbane and Richmond, and will next be available to face Collingwood.
