Melbourne key forward Jacob van Rooyen will miss the next three games through suspension after his ban was upheld by the AFL Appeals Board.
Van Rooyen's three-match suspension had been upheld by the Tribunal on Tuesday after the match review officer initially handed down the ban on Sunday.
Melbourne's defence argued that the Tribunal made a mistake in not allowing a report from a biomechanist during the original Tribunal hearing.
They also argued that the Tribunal made an error in its interpretation of the AFL's law 18.5.3 which covers marking contests and the type of contact that is permitted.
Van Rooyen's defence argued that the law said that incidental contact in a marking contest is permitted if the actions are reasonable in the context of a marking contest.
However, the Appeals Board saw the situation in the same light as the Tribunal and the suspension remained.
Van Rooyen will now miss Round 24, the Wildcard Round/first week of finals and the second week of finals if Melbourne makes it that far.
It is a massive blow for the Demons, who rely on van Rooyen's ability to crash parks and take contested marks in their makeshift forward line.
The incident occurred during the Port Adelaide-Melbourne game on Saturday night.
Van Rooyen's arm collected, while attempting to spoil, Port Adelaide's Allir Aliir's head and neck in a marking contest. Aliir was knocked out and was taken out of the game.
The 23-year-old key forward has had a career-best season to date, booting 42 goals from 22 games, including two bags of six and five goals.
